Syria and The Syrian civil war 3
The FSA is demanding an al-Qaeda-linked group hand over the man it blames for killing one of its top commanders. Abu Basir was killed at a checkpoint in Latakia province on Thursday, 10 July 2013.[346] Dell Latitude E5510 battery
Jabhat al-Nusra
Main article: Jabhat al-Nusra
The al-Nusra Front, being the biggest jihadist group in Syria, is often considered to be the most aggressive and violent part of the opposition.[347] Being responsible for over 50 suicide bombings, including several deadly explosions in Damascus in 2011 and 2012, it is recognized as a terrorist organization by Syrian government and was designated as such by United States in December 2012.[64] Dell Latitude E5500 battery
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In April 2013, the leader of the Islamic state of Iraq released an audio statement announcing that Jabhat al-Nusra is its branch in Syria.[34Dell Latitude E6400 ATG battery
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8] The leader of Al Nusra, Abu Mohammad al-Golani, said that the group will not merge with the Islamic state of Iraq, but still maintain allegiance to Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of al-Qaeda.[349] Dell Latitude E4300 battery
The relationship between the Front and the indigenous Syrian opposition is tense, even though Jabhat al-Nusra has fought alongside the FSA in several battles. The Mujahideen's strict religious views and willingness to impose sharia law disturbed many Syrians.[35Dell Latitude E4310 battery
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Dell Latitude E6430 battery0] Some rebel commanders have accused foreign jihadists of "stealing the revolution", robbing Syrian factories and displaying religious intolerance.[351]
Jabhat al-Nusra has been accused of mistreating religious and ethnic minorities since their formation.[352] Dell Latitude E6400 XFR battery
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The estimated manpower of Jabhat al-Nusra is approximately 6,000–10,000 people, including many foreign fighters.[353]
Hezbollah
Main article: Hezbollah
General Secretary Nasrallah denied Hezbollah had been fighting on behalf of the Syrian government, stating in a 12 October 2012 speech that "right from the start the Syrian opposition has been telling the media that Hezbollah sent 3,000 fighters to Syria, which we have denied".[354] Dell Latitude E6410 ATG battery
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However, according to the Lebanese Daily Star newspaper, Nasrallah said in the same speech that Hezbollah fighters helped the Syrian government "retain control of some 23 strategically located villages [in Syria] inhabited by Shiites of Lebanese citizenship". Nasrallah said that Hezbollah fighters have died in Syria doing their "jihadist duties".[355] Dell Latitude E6500 battery
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In 2012, Hezbollah fighters crossed the border from Lebanon and took over eight villages in the Al-Qusayr District of Syria.[356]
Former secretary general of Hezbollah, Sheikh Sobhi Tfaili, confirmed in February 2013 that Hezbollah was fighting for the Syrian army.[357] Dell Latitude E6510 battery
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On 12 May, Hezbollah, with the Syrian army, attempted to retake part of Qusayr.[222] By the end of the day, 60 percent of the city, including the municipal office building, were under pro-Assad forces.[222] In Lebanon, there have been "a recent increase in the funerals of Hezbollah fighters" and "Syrian rebels have shelled Hezbollah-controlled areas."[222] Dell Latitude E6120 battery
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As of 14 May, Hezbollah fighters were reported to be fighting alongside the Syrian army, particularly the Homs province.[358] and Hassan Nasrallah has called on Shiites and Hezbollah to protect the shrine of Sayida Zeinab.[35Sony PCG-4Q2M battery,
Sony PCG-71315M battery8] President Bashar al-Assad denied in May 2013 that there were foreign fighters, Arab or otherwise, to be fighting for the government in Syria.[359]
On 25 May, Nasrallah announced that Hezbollah is fighting in the Syrian civil war against Islamic extremists and "pledged that his group will not allow Syrian militants to control areas that border Lebanon".[360Sony VPCF115FM battery
Sony VPCF11JFX battery
Sony VPCF119HX battery] He confirmed that Hezbollah was fighting in the strategic Syrian town of Qusayr on the same side as Assad's forces.[360] In the televised address, he said, "If Syria falls in the hands of America, Israel and the takfiris, the people of our region will go into a dark period."[360] Sony VPCF11MFX battery
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Political groups involved in the conflict
Coalition members in Doha. In center, president al-Khatib, along with VPs Seif and Atassi, as well as all SNC chairmen Ghalioun, Sieda and Sabra. Sony VPCF113FX battery
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Syrian National Council
Main article: Syrian National Council
Formed on 23 August 2011, the National Council is a coalition of anti-government groups, based in Turkey. The National Council seeks the end of Bashar al-Assad's rule and the establishment of a modern, civil, democratic state. Sony VPCF11LFX battery
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Sony VPCF11HGX batterySNC has links with the Free Syrian Army.
In November 2012, the council agreed to unify with several other opposition groups to form the Syrian National Coalition. The SNC has 22 out of 60 seats of the Syrian National Coalition.[361]
Syrian National Coalition
Main article: National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces
On 11 November 2012 in Doha, Sony VPCF117FX battery
Sony VPCF11BFX batterythe National Council and other opposition forces united as the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces.[ Sony VPCF112FX battery
Sony VPCF11AFX battery362] The following day, it was recognized as the legitimate government of Syria by numerous Persian Gulf states. Delegates to the Coalition's leadership council are to include women and representatives of religious and ethnic minorities, including Alawites. The military council will reportedly include the Free Syrian Army.[363] Sony PCG-4R1M battery
The main aims of the National Coalition are replacing the Bashar al-Assad government and "its symbols and pillars of support", "dismantling the security services", unifying and supporting the Free Syrian Army, Sony VPCF11KFX battery
Sony VPCF1190X battery refusing dialogue and negotiation with the al-Assad government, and "holding accountable those responsible for killing Syrians, destroying [Syria], and displacing [Syrians]".[364]
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National Coordination Committee
Main article: National Coordination Committee for Democratic Change
The National Coordination Committee for Democratic Change (NCC) is a Syrian bloc consisting of 13 left-wing political parties, among which is the Kurdish PYD. The NCC is a bloc taking position in between SNC and pro-government movements, Sony VPCF11CGX battery
Sony VPCF11NFX batteryand has a left-leaning political profile.
The NCC differs from the Syrian National Coalition on two main points of strategy:
The NCC refuses to accept foreign military intervention, although it does accept various forms of support for the opposition and supports Arab League involvement in the conflict. Sony VPCF116FX battery
It tries to maintain a pacifist stance in relationship to the Syrian government, opposing the sectarianism of which both the FSA and pro-government militias have been accused.
Despite having endorsed the Free Syrian Army on 23 September 2012, the FSA has dismissed the NCC as an extension of the government, Sony PCG-71C11M battery
Sony PCG-91311M battery stating that "this opposition is just the other face of the same coin".[365] The Coordination Committee, unlike the Syrian National Council, believed that the solution was to keep the current Syrian government, Sony PCG-61511M battery
Sony PCG-91112M batteryand hoped to resolve the current crisis through dialogue, in order to achieve "a safe and peaceful transition from a state of despotism to democracy".[366] Despite since changing its stance of the continuation of the Assad government in some kind of transitional capacity, Sony PCG-61611M battery
Sony PCG-71511M batterythe NCC has held onto its policy of opposing all foreign intervention, but has previously suggested the group would find the United Nations Supervision Mission in Syria acceptable.[367] Sony VPCF111FX battery
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Sectarianism and minorities
Main article: Sectarianism and minorities in the Syrian civil war
Map of Syria's ethno-religious composition in 1976
Sectarianism
Both the opposition and government have accused each other of employing sectarian agitation. The successive governments of Hafez and Bashar al-Assad have been closely associated with the country's minority Alawite sect of Islam, Dell XPS 14 Battery
whereas the majority of the population, and thus most of the opposition, is Sunni, lending plausibility to such charges, even though both leaderships claim to be secular. Sony PCG-61712M battery
The government has also been widely accused of fomenting sectarian hatred against the opposition.[368] Analysts describe Assad's use of force to displace Sunni populations as a form of ethnic cleansing.[36
Sony PCG-71411M battery9] In a March 2012 TIME report, an anti-Assad activist claimed that the Syrian government had paid government workers to write anti-Alawite graffiti and chant sectarian slogans at opposition rallies.[370] Dell XPS 14D Battery
Dell Inspiron N7010R BatteryAlawites who have taken refugee at the coast and in the Alawite mountains as well as in Lebanon have also told journalists that they were offered money by the Syrian government to spread sectarianism through chants and graffiti.[370]
At the uprising's outset, some protesters reportedly chanted sectarian threats such as "Christians to Beirut; Alawites to the coffin".[37Sony PCG-71511M battery
Sony PCG-61712M battery1] Some prominent opposition groups (such as the Muslim Brotherhood) have a religious basis which has been seen as threatening to Syria's Alawite and Christian minorities. Smaller opposition factions, such as the Al-Qaeda-affiliated jihadist Al-Nusra Front, take explicitly sectarian positions.[3Sony PCG-71411M battery
Sony PCG-61813M battery72] There are reports of incidents in which rebel forces engaged in sectarian violence, such as burning Shi'ite mosques.[373]
In mid-2012, the fear of rising sectarian anger against the Alawite community led to speculation of a re-creation of the 1920s-era Alawite State as a safe haven for Assad and the leadership should Damascus finally fall. Sony PCG-91112M battery
Latakia and Tartus provinces both have Alawite-majority populations, and historically constituted the territory of the Alawite State between 1920 and 1936.[374] Around the same time, Christians living in Aleppo started to arm themselves, Sony PCG-71318M battery
Sony PCG-61511M battery many with the help of the Syrian government. Christian groups expressed fears that Islamist rebels would persecute them, as had happened to Christians in Iraq during the Iraq War.[375] Sony PCG-71315M battery
In December 2012, UN human rights investigators stated that there had been "a clear shift" in the nature of the conflict since the beginning of the year, with more fighters and civilians on both sides describing the civil war in ethnic or religious terms. The investigators claimed that, sectarian divides have deepened,
Sony PCG-71D14M batteryas "ethnic and religious minority groups have increasingly aligned themselves with parties to the conflict", raising the possibility of reprisal killings and prolonged violence that could last for years after the government falls.[376] Sony PCG-6Z2M battery,
As for April 2013, the secular motives of the initial protests have been almost totally displaced by growing Islamist influence. In rebel-held areas the courts staff consists of clerics and lawyers applying Sharia, Sony PCG-6X4M battery,
Sony PCG-4Q1M batterywhile the military command has also been filled with officers willing to infuse Islamic law into a future government. As New York Times reporters related, "nowhere in rebel-controlled Syria is there a secular fighting force to speak of." Jabhat al-Nusra fighters put back oil fields staff to work and took control of Aleppo's bakeries and flour distribution.[ Sony PCG-6X2M battery,
377] However, experts say that hard-line Islamists make up only 8,000 of the 140,000 rebel force.[378][379] With the NPR reporting that Islamist only make up a small fraction of the opposition.[380] Sony PCG-4Q2M battery
In response to the 2 May 2013 alleged Baniyas massacre, the Turkish government accused the Syrian government of ethnic cleansing, citing the killings of Sunnis in Baniyas as such.[381]
Kurds
Kurds – mostly Sunni Muslims, with a small minority of Yezidis – represented 10% of Syria's population at the start of the uprising in 2011. Dell XPS 15 Battery
They had suffered from decades of discrimination and neglect, being deprived of basic civil, cultural, economic, and social rights. Additionally, since 1962, they and their children had been denied Syrian nationality, leading to a widespread inability to seek employment in the public sector.[382Dell XPS 15-L501X Battery
Dell Inspiron N7110 Battery]:7 When protests began, Assad's government finally granted citizenship to an estimated 200,000 stateless Kurds, in an effort to try and neutralise potential Kurdish opposition.[38Dell XPS 15-L502X Battery
Dell Inspiron N4030 Battery3] This concession, combined with Turkish endorsement of the opposition and Kurdish under-representation in the Syrian National Council, has resulted in Kurds participating in the civil war in smaller numbers than their Syrian Arab counterparts.[383] Consequently, Dell XPS 15Z Battery
Dell Inspiron N4020 Batteryviolence and state repression in Kurdish areas has been less severe.[383] In terms of a post-Assad Syria, Kurds reportedly desire a degree of autonomy within a decentralised state.[384] Dell XPS L702X Battery
In 2012, several cities with large Kurdish populations, such as Qamishli and Al-Hasakah, began witnessing large-scale protests against the Syrian government. The government responded by sending in tanks and firing upon the protesters.[385] However, the head of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), Dell XPS 17-L701X Battery
Dell Inspiron 14V Battery Salih Muslim, stated in July 2012 that he did not support either the government or the opposition.[386] Kurdish fighters have since clashed with both government and rebel forces. Dell XPS 17-L702X Battery
Since the outset of the civil war, numerous Kurdish political parties have organised themselves into an umbrella organisation, the Kurdish National Council. Until October 2011, most of these parties were members of the NCC. After October 2011, Dell XPS L501X Battery
Dell XPS L502X Battery only the PYD remained in the NCC, holding a more moderate stance regarding the Assad government.
On 19 July 2012, Kurdish militias from the PYD and Kurdish National Council forced out government forces from several areas, including the town of Ayn al-Arab (known as Kobanê in Kurdish). Kurdish militias then denied access to the FSA, Dell Inspiron N5110 Battery
whose fighters approached upon hearing of the Kurdish victory, arguing that Kurds could take care of Kurdish areas alone. Nuri Brimo, a spokesperson for the PYD, announced that the liberation of Kobane was the beginning of a battle for the whole of Syrian Kurdistan and its autonomy.[387] Dell Inspiron N5030 Battery
Some in the opposition claimed that the PKK, a Kurdish separatist group in Turkey, is helping the Syrian government in the conflict. However, Murat Karayilan, the leader of the PKK, denied such claims, stating that the Kurds in Syria do not support either side and desire both neutrality and autonomy.[3Dell Inspiron N5010R Battery
Dell Inspiron N4110 Battery88] In February 2013, Arab rebels and Kurdish fighters in northern Syria agreed to a peace deal, ending months of hostilities.[389]
Iraqi and Syrian Kurds established control over their own regions with the help of the Turkish-based Kurdistan Workers' Party and the Kurdistan Regional Government in Irbil, under President Massoud Barzani.[390] Dell Inspiron N3010R Battery
Dell Inspiron N5010 Battery The Syrian Kurdish enclave has been fighting westward to secure an outlet to the Mediterranean Sea, between the northern part of the Alawi region and the Syrian border with Turkey.[390] Dell Inspiron N3010 Battery
The conflict between the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) and Islamists groups such as Jabhat al- Nusra have escalated since a group of Kurds expelled Islamists from the border town of Ras al-Ain.[391] Dell Inspiron N4010 Battery
On 11 August, 2013, the President of Iraqi Kurdistan, Masoud Barzani, announced that he would use "all capabilities" to defend Kurds who are under threat from al-Qaeda fighters in Syria. He declared that a committee will be formed to look into reports of violence, while hinting at a possible intervention by the Peshmerga.[392] Dell Inspiron N4010D Battery
Palestinians
The reaction of the approximately 500,000 Palestinians living in Syria to the conflict has been mixed.[393] Syria's Palestinian community largely remained neutral in the early days of the uprising.[394]
Dell Inspiron 17R Battery Ongoing government attacks and shelling have caused any pro-government sympathies among the Palestinians in Syria to dwindle severely.[393] According to the UN, 75% of the Palestinians in Syria have been affected by the uprising, and more than 600 of them have been killed.[39Dell Inspiron N4010R Battery
Dell Inspiron N7010 Battery5] Although many Palestinians are appreciative of the civil rights given to them by the Syrian government, in comparison to other Arab states, these same rights have allowed the younger generation of Palestinians to be "raised essentially as Syrians" who "find it hard not to be swept up in the fervor on the streets", Dell Latitude E4200 Battery
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according to the New York Times.[396]
While major Palestinian factions such as Hamas have turned against the Syrian government, other groups, particularly the PFLP-General Command (PFLP-GC), Dell Latitude E4300 Battery
Dell Latitude E6400 XFR Batteryhave remained supportive. The PFLP-GC has been accused by pro-rebel Palestinians of actively participating in the conflict as secret police in the refugee camps.[396] In late October 2012, pro-rebel Palestinians formed the so-called Storm Brigade with the task of wresting control of the Yarmouk Camp in Damascus from pro-government groups.[397]
In May 2013, Dell Latitude E5400 Battery
Dell Latitude E6400 ATG Battery the PFLP-GC announced that it would be forming combat units in an attempt to "recapture" Israeli-occupied territory, in particular the Golan Heights. Hezbollah and the Assad government offered tacit support to the plan.[398]
International reaction and aid
International reaction
Main article: International reactions to the Syrian civil war
Esther Brimmer speaks at Human Rights Council urgent debate on Syria, February 2012
The conflict in Syria has received significant international attention. The Arab League, European Union, the United Nations,[3Dell Latitude E5500 Battery
Dell Latitude E6520 Battery99] and many Western governments condemned the Syrian government's violent response to the protests, and many expressed support for the protesters' right to exercise free speech.[4Dell Latitude E5520 Battery
00] Initially, many Middle Eastern governments expressed support for Assad, but they switched sides as the death toll mounted. Both the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation suspended Syria's membership. Dell Latitude E6220 Battery
Dell Latitude E6510 Battery On 4 October 2011, Russia and China vetoed a Western-drafted resolution which would have threatened the Syrian government with targeted sanctions if it continued military actions against protestors.[401] Dell Latitude E6400 Battery
In June 2012 UN Action Group on Syria met in Geneva and agreed on a six-point plan that would lead to free elections in Syria, with a transitional government including members of Assad's administration and the opposition.[4Dell Latitude E6420 Battery
02] However, the draft resolution, proposed soon after by Russia, was rejected by Western countries as lacking pressure and not demanding that Assad would step down in the first place. Russia and China never agreed with such provision.[403] Dell Latitude E6420 ATG Battery
The US and its NATO allies have pressed for al-Assad's departure. The draft eventually put under vote by UNSC called Assad to stop use of heavy weapons in urban areas and withdraw his forces, or face sanctions. It was vetoed by Russia and China, as having "uneven content intended to put pressure on only one party."[404Dell Latitude E6210 Battery
Dell Latitude E6530 Battery][405] Russian officials stated that plans for Syria's political future should not be forced on it from outside[405] and claimed that "terrorists" are present within the opposition's ranks.[406] Dell Latitude E6330 Battery
Dell Latitude E6520N BatteryIn December 2012, the Russian deputy foreign minister, Mikhail Bogdanov, claimed Syria's government was "progressively losing control" and that "the victory of the Syrian opposition cannot be excluded", although the Russian Foreign Ministry insisted soon after that the country had not changed its position on Syria and "never will".[40Dell Latitude E5520 Battery
Dell Latitude E6430S XFR Battery7] Iran, a longtime ally of Syria, has consistently expressed support for Assad.[408]
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stated that giving further arms to either side "would not be helpful".[409]
On 15 June Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi announced that he was severing diplomatic relations between Syria and Egypt, closing the Egyptian embassy in Damascus and ordering Syria to close its own embassy in Cairo.[410Dell Latitude E5420M Battery
Dell Latitude E6430 ATG Battery] On 24 June the Syrian foreign minister Walid Al-Moualem said that Syria would attend peace talks, not to transfer power but to form "a broad national unity government".[411] Dell Latitude E5430 Battery
Since May 2013 Russia and United States have been trying to organize second peace conference in Geneva. The exact date is still unknown, but would not happen before August, according to negotiator's claims. Dell Latitude E5530 Battery
Dell Latitude E6430 Battery The main difference between U.S. and Russian position is whether Assad could be allowed to take part in the transitional government. U.S. and Syrian opposition rule out such option, while Russia presses for talks without preconditions. The military gains made in June by Syrian government forces make real agreement less likely.[41Sony VGP-BPS13 Battery
Humanitarian help
U.S. non-lethal aid to Syrian opposition forces, May 2013
USAID and other government agencies in US delivered nearly $385 million of aid items to Syria in 2012 and 2013. The United States is providing food aid, medical supplies, emergency and basic health care, shelter materials, clean water, hygiene education and supplies, and other relief supplies.[413] Islamic Relief has stocked 30 hospitals and sent hundreds of thousands of medical and food parcels.[414] Sony VGP-BPS13B/Q battery
Iran has been exporting between 500 and 800 tonnes of flour daily to Syria.[415]
Over 100 wounded Syrians have been treated in Israel.[416] The Israel Defense Forces grants special permits for Syrians who are critically injured to enter Israel and obtain the necessary medical treatment; the IDF escorts them to and from the hospital.[41Sony VGP-BPS13A/B battery
Sony VGP-BPS21 battery7] The majority of the injured Syrians have been sent to the Ziv Medical Center in Safed.[417] The Israel Defense Forces also set up a field hospital along the border to help treat less threatening injuries.[416][418] Sony VGP-BPS13/B battery
On 26 April 2013 a humanitarian convoy, inspired by Gaza Flotilla, departed from Turkey to Syria. Called Hayat ("Life"), it is set to deliver aid items to IDPs inside Syria and refugees in neighboring countries: Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt.[419] Sony VGP-BPS13B/S battery
The World Health Organization has reported that 35% of the country's hospitals are out of service and, depending upon the region, up to 70% of the health care professionals have fled. Cases of diarrhoea and hepatitis-A have increased by more than twofold since the beginning of the year.
Sony VGP-BPS13B batteryDue to the fighting the normal vaccination programs cannot be undertaken. The displaced refugees also may pose a risk to the countries to which they have fled.[420]
Foreign involvement
Military support
Main article: Foreign involvement in the Syrian civil war
Support for the opposition
U.S. soldiers maintaining Patriot missile batteries near Gaziantep, Turkey in February 2013
Turkey, once an ally of Syria, has condemned Assad over the violent crackdown and has requested his departure from office. Sony VGP-BPS13A battery
Sony VGP-BPS13A/R batteryIn October 2011, Turkey began sheltering the Free Syrian Army, offering the group a safe zone and a base of operation. Together with Saudi Arabia and Qatar, Turkey has also provided the rebels with arms and other military equipment.[421] Sony VGP-BPS13A/S battery
After Syria had shot down a Turkish warplane and both countries had exchanged fire across the border, Turkey requested American Patriot missile batteries to help defend its borders against possible Syrian aggression; the missiles were delivered by NATO in January 2013.[42Sony VGP-BPS13S battery
Since 2012, the United States,[423] United Kingdom[424] and France[425] have provided opposition forces with non-lethal aid including food and medical supplies, and promised to begin providing military aid, including weapons, communications equipment, body armor, medical supplies and non-combat armored vehicles.[426Sony PCG-4121DL Battery
Sony PCG-41414L Battery][427] The U.K. was also reported to have provided intelligence support from its Cyprus bases, revealing Syrian military movements to Turkish officials, who then pass on the information to the FSA.[428] Sony PCG-4121EL Battery
In spring 2012, Saudi Arabia and Qatar announced they would begin arming and bankrolling the opposition.[429] Paul Salem, director of the Carnegie Middle East Centre in Beirut, and Emile Hokayem of the International Institute of Strategic Studies argued that such support would be unlikely to immediately make a decisive impact.[43Sony PCG-4121FL Battery
Sony PCG-41412L Battery0] A ship carrying weapons from Libya believed destined for Syria's rebels was intercepted by Lebanon in April 2012.[431] In December 2012, Qatar was reported to be shipping arms to Sunni Islamists in Syria as a means of cementing alliances in the Middle East.[43Sony PCG-4121GL Battery
Sony PCG-41411L Battery2] The Financial Times reported that Qatar had funded the Syrian rebellion by "as much as $3 billion" over the first two years, but in May 2013 reported that Saudi Arabia was becoming the main provider of arms to the rebels.[ Sony PCG-41211L Battery
Sony PCG-41218L Battery421] The majority of the weapons provided to rebel forces by Saudi Arabia and Qatar have ended up in the hands of hardline Islamic jihadists, who it is feared will create problems elsewhere once the Syrian conflict comes to a close.[433] Sony PCG-41212L Battery
In December 2012, a new wave of weapons from foreign supporters were transferred to rebel forces via the Jordanian border in the country's south. The arms included M79 Osa anti-tank weapons and M-60 recoilless rifles purchased by Saudi Arabia from Croatia. Sony PCG-41213L Battery
Sony PCG-41216L BatteryPreviously, most of the weapons were delivered via the Turkish border in the north. However, much of the arms unintentionally ended up in the hands of Islamist rebels. The goal for the change in routes was to strengthen moderate rebels and to bring the war closer to Damascus.[434] Sony PCG-41214L Battery
In early March 2013, a Jordanian security source revealed that the United States, Britain, and France were training non-Islamist rebels in Jordan.[435] On 22 April 2013 the European Union lifted its embargo on Syrian oil to import barrels directly from rebel groups. Several of the oil fields are believed to be under control of Jabhat al-Nusra. sony PCG-4R1L battery
sony PCG-6Z4L battery Some analysts say the decision might also set up a deadly competition between rebel groups over the resource.[436]
Since April 2013, Saudi Arabia had began supplying the FSA with limited amounts of shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles.[437sony PCG-4Q3L battery
sony PCG-6Z3L battery] However in June 2013, a gulf source declared that Saudi Arabia had fully equipped rebels with shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles without limitations for the first time.[238]
On 13 June, a government official states that the Obama administration, after days of high-level meetings, has approved providing lethal arms to the Supreme Military Council (SMC).[438] The SMC is a rebel command structure that includes representatives from most major rebel groups, and excludes the Islamic extremist elements.[43sony PCG-4Q1L battery
sony PCG-6Z2L battery9] The decision was made shortly after the administration concluded that the Assad government used chemical weapons on opposition forces, thus crossing the "red line" drew by Obama earlier in 2012.[ sony PCG-6X1L battery
sony PCG-6Z1L battery440] The arms will include small arms and ammunition, and possibly anti-tank weapons.[441] However, they will not include anti-aircraft weapons, something repeatedly requested by the armed opposition.[441] Such weapons would be supplied by the US "on our own timeline".[442] sony PCG-6X2L battery
The decision about arming the rebels was described as a "disaster" by Russian FM Sergei Lavrov, reminding that "Al-Qaeda was basically born from the Mujahedeen movement financed by the United States when the Soviets were in Afghanistan. Then al-Qaeda boomeranged."
[443] However, analysts believe the shortage of arms within the Free Syrian Army is an important cause of a growing Islamic militant strength in Syria, as joining a group with at least some stable arms source, such as al-Nusra, sony PCG-6X8L battery
sony PCG-6XAL batteryis the first concern among the fighters on the ground. This became a growing trend in 2013 with many fighters including from the FSA joining Al Nusra only for its ammunition supplies.[344]
The Pentagon has proposed a limited no-fly zone over southern Syria, using F-16s and Patriot missiles, operating from Jordanian airspace. The Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov claimed that such a move would be illegal under international law.[409][444][ Sony PCG-71C11L Battery
Sony PCG-91311L Battery445] Proponents of the proposal say a no-fly zone could be imposed without a UN Security Council resolution, since the US would not regularly enter Syrian airspace and wouldn't hold Syrian territory.[446] Sony PCG-71C12L Battery
In late June 2013 rebels received a large shipment of arms from their Gulf allies, including anti-aircraft and anti-tank missiles. The delivery reportedly raised tensions between opposition groups, as most of the shipment had been received by Ahrar ash-Sham, an extremist militant group. The anti-tank weapons are reported to have already stalled recent government advances in Daraa province.[4Sony PCG-61714L Battery
Sony PCG-91211L Battery47] Many of these weapons have come from Libyan stockpiles and have been delivered by Qatari C-17 to Turkey and then distributed to the rebels. Qatari C-17s have made at least three trips this year from Libya directly to Ankara.[66] Sony PCG-61813L Battery
On 25 August 2013 Rebels received a 400 tonne shipment of weapons from sympathetic countries such as Turkey and other Gulf states. Such weapons and ammunition largely consist of anti-aircraft weapons. According to one rebel officer the flow of arms has rapidly increased since allegations of the use of chemical weapons in Damascus by loyalist forces. [448] Sony PCG-61911L Battery
Support for the Syrian government
See also: Russia's role in the Syrian civil war
Russia, whose Tartus naval base, electronic surveillance facility in Latakia[449] and airbase facilities at Tadmur (Palmyra)[4Sony PCG-61913L Battery
Sony PCG-71912L Battery50] are its only military outposts outside the former Soviet Union, has supplied the Syrian government with arms as part of a business contract signed before the uprising began. Most Syrian military equipment, including tanks, missiles, and artillery, was acquired from Russia, Sony PCG-71614L Battery
Sony PCG-71911L Battery which continues sales and technical support.[451] Russian-built air defense systems and anti-aircraft missile batteries purchased by Syria have been upgraded through the installation of new equipment and modification of existing systems by Russian suppliers during the civil war; sometimes these installations are manned by Russian military advisers.[ Sony PCG-71713L Battery
Sony PCG-71811L Battery449] According to Russian Ground Forces Air Defense commander Major General Alexander Leonov, Syria's Russian-supplied air defenses are sophisticated and effective.[452] Overcoming them, Sony PCG-61713L Battery
as would be required in the event of the threatened military intervention should Syria use chemical weapons, would be a major challenge for U.S. and NATO forces.[449]
Western diplomats have frequently criticized Russia's behavior, but Russia denied its actions have violated any international law. Sony PCG-91112L Battery
Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed that Russia does not support either side.[453] However, a Syrian jetliner returning from Moscow in October 2012 was forced to land in Ankara, the Turkish capital, and the government of Turkey announced hours later that Russian munitions and military equipment had been discovered aboard the aircraft and confiscated.[4Sony PCG-71312L Battery
Sony PCG-61317L Battery54] The Russian Foreign Ministry denied that the cargo of the plane was sold to the Syrian military by the Russian government and claimed that its shipping did not violate international sanctions, contrary to the Turkish assertion.[455] Later in October, the Russian military demanded an inquiry into the source of the Syrian rebels' U.S.-made Stinger surface-to-air missiles.[45Sony PCG-71311L Battery
Sony PCG-61316L Battery6] By January 2013, Russia showed "little sign of easing support for the Assad regime" and was "carrying out the largest naval exercises since the Soviet era off the coast of Syria", though some analysts speculated that this was merely cover to use its warships for large-scale evacuations of its citizens.[ Sony PCG-71217L Battery
Sony PCG-61315L Battery457] By May 2013 Russia was reported to have recently sent advanced anti-ship missiles to Damascus, capable of sinking vessels nearly 300 kilometres away. Russia remained 'somewhat enigmatic' about supplies of the S-300 anti-aircraft missile system to Syria. Sergei Lavrov said Russia was not thinking of selling, but had already concluded a sale.[ Sony PCG-71313L Battery
Sony PCG-61312L Battery458] However, president Putin said in June that Russia had not yet delivered the arms.[459]
Iran, which sees Syria as a key regional ally, has not only provided the Assad government with arms and technical support, but has also sent combat troops, specifically the Revolutionary Guards, to support Syrian military operations.[4Sony PCG-71315L Battery
Sony PCG-61311L Battery60] Technical support has reportedly included unmanned aerial vehicles (a.k.a. 'drones') to guide Syrian military planes and gunners in their bombarding of rebel positions.[461]
Sony PCG-61215L Battery It has been reported that Iran also trained personnel from Hezbollah, a militant group based in Lebanon which has deployed pro-Assad fighters to Syria.[462] In January 2013, during a prisoner swap between the Syrian rebels and the Assad government, Sony PCG-71316L Battery
Sony PCG-61211L Battery 48 Iranians were reportedly released by the rebels in exchange for nearly 2,130 prisoners held by the Syrian government. Rebels claimed the captives were linked to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.[463] Sony PCG-71317L Battery
United States State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland described the Iranians as "members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard", describing their presence as "just another example of how Iran continues to provide guidance, expertise, personnel, technical capabilities to the Syrian regime."[464] In March 2013, Israeli sources alleged that Iran and Hezbollah had built a 50,000-strong joint militia to support Assad.[ Sony PCG-71318L Battery
465] Iraq, located between Syria and Iran, has been criticized by the U.S. for allowing Iran to ship military supplies to Syria over Iraqi airspace.[466] According to the New York Times, Iranian arms transfers are changing the balance of power in the region, Sony PCG-71212L Battery
Sony PCG-71215L Battery and the civil war has "become a regional contest for primacy in Syria between Sunni Arabs and the Iran-backed Assad government and Hezbollah of Lebanon."[4Sony PCG-71211L Battery
Sony PCG-71216L Battery67] Iran is reportedly using Maharaj Airlines to ship weapons to the Syrian government.[467] According to the Iraqi foreign minister, random inspections of Iranian aircrafts crossing Iraqi airspace found no evidence of weapons transfer, Sony PCG-9Z1L Battery
Sony PCG-8151L Battery only non-lethal aid like medicines and food. At the same time, the foreign minister recognized and condemned Iranian weapon transfers through Iraq's airspace, but said there was nothing he could do to stop it.[468] Sony PCG-9Z2L Battery
Some analysts have interpreted the Syrian conflict as part of a regional proxy war between pro-opposition Sunni states, such as Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, and Iran and Shi'ites in Iraq, who support the Alawite-led Syrian government.[469] Sony PCG-7142L Battery
Russian, Eastern European and Iranian civilians have been viewed as legitimate targets by some resistance leaders and forces, a position rejected by the Syrian opposition coalition. At the outbreak of the civil war, there were an estimated 30,000 Russian civilians in Syria, and an additional 30,000 from former Soviet republics such as the Ukraine. Sony PCG-7152L Battery
Some – such as Anhar Kochneva, a journalist and blogger who was taken prisoner by Syrian rebels, and confessed under pressure that she worked for Russian intelligence – have played a role in support of the Assad government, but many are civilian workers uninvolved in espionage or military operations.[470] Sony PCG-7154L Battery
On 30 April 2013 Hasan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, declared in a broadcast speech that the Shiite military group would help Assad's government "with its full organizational might" and will not allow Syria "to fall into hands" of America, Israel and Islamic extremists. He warned that any damage made to Sayyidah Zaynab Mosque, Sony PCG-7161L Battery
Sony PCG-7184L Batteryan important Shiite shrine near Damascus, could unleash uncontrollable sectarian conflict, similar to one that had happened in Iraq.[471]
On 11 June President Vladimir Putin acknowledged that a lack of reforms from the Syrian government may have led to the current strife. He stated on Russian state media that:
"Syria as a country was rife for some kind of change. And the government of Syria should have felt that in due time and should have undertaken some reform. Had they done that, what we're seeing in Syria today would have never happened."[472] Sony PCG-7171L Battery
On 17 June it was reported by a journalist for the Independent that Iran was sending 4,000 Revolutionary Guards to fight in Syria.[473] Iranian officials denied that claim.[474] Sony PCG-7172L Battery
On 26 June the Deputy Russian Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov stated that the Russian naval facility in Tartus has been evacuated: "Presently, the Russian Defense Ministry has not a single person stationed in Syria."[47
Sony PCG-7174L Battery5] However, two days later this claim was denied by both Defense and Foreign Ministers. FM Sergei Lavrov said that "The evacuation of this base is out of question as well as the evacuation of its personnel" and reassured that the Russian embassy in Damascus was still working.[476] Sony PCG-61412L Battery
In early August a meeting occurred between President Putin and Saudi Royal Prince Bandar bin Sultan, chief of the Saudi Intelligence agency Al Mukhabarat Al A'amah, during which it is alleged that the Saudi government was prepared to offer Russia exclusive oil and gas deals, along with other concessions economic and political concessions, Sony PCG-71111L Battery
if Russia removed its support for the Syrian government. President Putin replied that he believed President Assad was thee the best representative of the Syrian people as opposed to "those liver eaters". To which the Prince stated that the "military option" would be unavoidable. [477] Sony PCG-81111L Battery
Mujahideen involvement
Foreign fighters have joined the conflict in opposition to Assad. While most of them are jihadists, some individuals, such as Mahdi al-Harati, have joined to support the Syrian opposition.[478]
The ICSR estimates that 2,000–5,500 foreign fighters have gone to Syria since the beginning of the protests,
Sony PCG-81411L Batteryabout 7–11 percent of whom came from Europe. It is also estimated that the number of foreign fighters does not exceed 10 percent of the opposition armed forces.[479] The European Commission expressed concerns that some of the fighters might use their skills obtained in Syria to commit acts of terrorism back in Europe in the future.[480]
The most significant group is Al-Nusra Front, Sony PCG-81112L Battery
Sony PCG-81313L Batteryheaded by Abu Mohammed al-Golani, which probably accounts for up to a quarter of opposition fighters in Syria. It includes some of the rebellion's most battle-hardened and effective fighters, coming from Bosnia, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Tunisia, Palestine, Lebanon, Australia, Chechnya, Kuwait, Sony PCG-81113L Battery
Sony PCG-81312L Batterythe United Arab Emirates, Kosovo, Azerbaijan, France, Iraq, Spain, Denmark and Tajikistan.[353]
After the civil war in Libya had finished, fighters from there began moving to Syria through Turkey. It was reported by Syrian opposition that foreigners brought heavy weapons with them, including surface-to-air missiles.
Sony PCG-81311L BatteryHowever, Libyans denied that claim.[481] Abdulhakim Belhadj, head of the Tripoli Military Council, met with FSA leaders near the border with Turkey. The meetings were a sign of growing ties between new Libyan government and Syrian opposition. The arrangements included transfers of money and weapons, Sony PCG-81114L Battery
Sony PCG-81214L Battery as well as training of the rebels by skilled fighters from Libya.[482] One of the Libya's most known rebel commanders, Mahdi al-Harati, traveled to Syria in a group of 30 fighters, to form Liwaa al-Umma there.[483]
In October 2012, various Iraqi religious sects join the conflict in Syria on both sides. Radical Sunnis from Iraq, have traveled to Syria to fight against President Bashar al-Assad and the Syrian government.[4Sony PCG-3B1L Battery
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84] Also, Shiites from Iraq, in Babil Province and Diyala Province, have traveled to Damascus from Tehran, or from the Shiite Islamic holy city of Najaf, Iraq to protect Sayyida Zeinab, an important mosque and shrine of Shia Islam in Damascus.[484] Sony PCG-3B2L Battery
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Hundreds of young Saudis were reported to travel through Turkey or Jordan in order to fight against Assad in Syria. In one documented case a judge encouraged a group of convicted young men to "fight against the real enemy, the Shia". Sony PCG-3B3L Battery
Most of them joined Syrian rebels. Since convicted criminals cannot leave Saudi Arabia without Interior Ministry permission, it is suspected that officials silently allow them to travel to fight.[485]
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Government of Tunisia estimated that about 800 of its citizens were fighting alongside Islamist forces in Syria. However, unofficial sources at Interior Ministry put the number as high as 2,000.[486]
Hundreds of Egyptian fighters are suspected to be involved in Syrian conflict. Some of them traveled there and back several times. The government officially confirmed 10 "martyrs".[487]
8 Spanish citizens have been arrested in Ceuta. Sony PCG-3B4L Battery
Sony PCG-5S3L Battery These individuals have been accused of training and organising the movement of Spaniards to fight in Syria, with the group having links to Al-Qaeda. Some 500 European citizens, according to EU counter-terrorism head Gilles de Kerchove, are fighting in Syria, two British citizens and an American woman have been killed in Syria so far.[488]
Impact Sony PCG-3C2L Battery
Deaths
Main article: Casualties of the Syrian civil war
Total deaths over the course of the conflict in Syria (18 March 2011 – 1 March 2013)
Estimates of deaths in the conflict vary widely, with figures, per opposition activist groups, ranging from 80,350 and 106,425.[28][3Sony PCG-3C3L Battery
7][42][69] On 2 January 2013, the United Nations stated that 60,000 had been killed since the civil war began, with U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay saying "The number of casualties is much higher than we expected, and is truly shocking."[489] Four months later, the U.N.'s updated figure for the death toll had reached 80,000.[41Sony PCG-3D3L Battery
Sony PCG-5S2L Battery] On 13 June the UN released an updated figure of people killed since fighting began, the figure being exactly 92,901, for up to the end of April 2013. Navi Pillay, UN high commissioner for human rights, stated that: "This is most likely a minimum casualty figure." The real toll was guessed to be over 100,000.[40][4Sony PCG-3D4L Battery
Sony PCG-5S1L Battery90] Some areas of the country have been affected disproportionately by the war; by some estimates, as many as a third of all deaths have occurred in the city of Homs.[491]
One problem has been determining the number of "armed combatants" who have died, due to some sources counting rebel fighters who were not government defectors as civilians.[492
Sony PCG-5N2L Battery
Sony PCG-5P4L Battery] At least half of those killed have been estimated to be combatants from both sides, including more than 15,300 government soldiers. In addition, UNICEF reported that over 500 children had been killed by early February 2012,[493] and another 400 children have been reportedly arrested and tortured in Syrian prisons;[ Sony PCG-3E3L Battery
Sony PCG-3J1L Battery4] both of these claims have been contested by the Syrian government. Additionally, over 600 detainees and political prisoners are known to have died under torture.[494] In mid-October 2012, the opposition activist group SOHR reported the number of children killed in the conflict had risen to 2,300,[495Sony PCG-3F1L Battery
Sony PCG-5R2L Battery] and in March 2013, opposition sources stated that over 5,000 children had been killed.[37] SOHR's methodology for counting civilian victims has been questioned, as the organisation includes opposition combatants among the number of civilian casualties, as long as these are not former members of the military.[496] Sony PCG-3F2L Battery
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Refugees
Main article: Refugees of the Syrian civil war
Syrian refugees in Lebanon living in cramped quarters (6 August 2012).
The violence in Syria has caused millions to flee their homes. In August 2012, the United Nations said more than one million people were internally displaced.[497] Many have sought safety in nearby countries. Jordan has seen the largest influx of refugees since the conflict began, followed by Turkey, Lebanon, and Iraq. Sony PCG-3F4L Battery
Sony PCG-5P2L BatteryTurkey has accepted 400,000 Syrian refugees, half of whom are spread around a dozen camps placed under the direct authority of the Turkish Government. Satellite images confirmed that the first Syrian camps appeared in Turkey in July 2011, shortly after the towns of Deraa, Homs and Hama were besieged.[49Sony PCG-3B1L Battery
Sony PCG-5N4L Battery8] On 9 October 2012, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that the number of external Syrian refugees stood at between 355,000 to 500,000.[499] In July 2013, the UN stated that the number of Syrian refugees had exceeded 1.8 million.[500]
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Human rights violations
Violations committed by government forces
The Syrian army has been accused of crimes against humanity, both before the start of the revolution and after. Amnesty International has reported that the Syrian army does not attempt to differentiate between rebels and civilians, often killing a number of innocents.[5Sony PCG-3G3L Battery
Sony PCG-3H3L Battery01] The Syrian Arab Army has also been accused of not differentiating between rebels and civilians in their air attacks.[502] In June 2013, a prison was captured by the Free Syrian Army, revealing ongoing torture of political prisoners.[503]
Weekly deaths over the course of the conflict in Syria (18 March 2011 – 1 March 2013)
The vast majority of human rights violations documented in Syria, including numerous international crimes, have been committed by the Syrian military and security forces and their allied militia.[504][505][506]:4[132]:10[5Sony PCG-3G5L Battery
Sony PCG-3H1L Battery07]:1[508]:20 The violations are considered by many to be so serious, deliberate, and systematic as to constitute crimes against humanity[132]:7[382]:5[508]:18–20[509] and war crimes.[132]
According to Human Rights Watch, the Assad government has created an "archipelago of torture centers".[51
0]:1 A key role in the repression, and particularly torture, is played by the mukhabarat: the Department of Military Intelligence, the Political Security Directorate, the General Intelligence Directorate, and the Air Force Intelligence Directorate.[3Sony VGP-BPS13 Battery
82]:9[510]:1, 35 The Syrian army is reported by rights groups to deliberately target children and civilians.[511][512] Wounded civilians who arrive at hospitals are also tortured if it is believed they come from anti-Assad areas.[513] Sony VGP-BPS13A Battery
Since the beginning of the conflict in March 2011, the Syrian army and police had repeatedly fired live ammunition on peaceful protesters[514] [515] [516] culminating to approximately 1000 protester deaths by 2012.[5Sony VGP-BPS13A/B Battery
17] The deadliest attack on protesters occurred on 1 August 2011, when the Syrian army was sent to Hama to quell growing protests there, killing over 150 in an event news media termed the "Ramadan massacre".[518][519] Sony VGP-BPS13A/Q Battery
The Syrian army have many times burned alive and buried alive their military and civilian detainees, including children.[520][521][522]
Human Rights Watch reported that the Syrian army had been planting landmines in areas along Turkish and Lebanese borders. The border with Turkey had already been secured with minefields, planted by Turkish army, since the 1950s.[523]
The Syrian government uses food deprivation as a weapon of war.[524] The Syrian army enforces food-blockades on rebel controlled districts, particularly that of the city of Homs, where food and medicine has to be smuggled.[525] Sony VGP-BPS21 Battery
Sony VGP-BPS21A/B Battery [526] In Syrian government controlled areas, houses of people suspected to be anti-Assad are bulldozed as collective punishment.[527] Sony VGP-BPS13B/B Battery
Several women's-rights organizations have accused the Syrian army of using rape as a weapon of war, saying that the abuse is widespread.[528][529] Women in the Syrian government's prisons are repeatedly raped and beaten, and are many times sexually tortured.[528][530] Sony VGP-BPS21A Battery
On 14 January 2013, the International Rescue Committee released a report stating many refugees flee Syria due to a widespread fear of rape. The report also spoke of the systematic targeting of health care workers, and the shooting of engineers seeking to maintain the sanitation and water infrastructure of Aleppo.[531] Sony VGP-B PS21B Battery
Throughout the war the Syrian government and Shabiha committed numerous massacres, with the deadliest ones being the Houla massacre, the Khalidya massacre, the Tremseh Massacre, the Khan Sheikhoun massacre, the Aleppo massacre, the Darraya massacre, and the Baniyas and Bayda massacres.[ Sony PCG-41212M battery
Sony PCG-31113M battery532] Each time the Syrian government blames "terrorists" for the massacre, but denies independent observers access to investigate. UN observers who have attempted to reach massacre sites were fired upon by the Syrian army.[533][534] Sony PCG-41215M battery
After massacres of Sunni families in the largely Alawite populated coast of Syria, the Syrian army has been accused by observers and other countries of committing genocide.[535] [536] Starting in 2013, widespread fear and concerns of ethnic cleansing emerged among the Sunni community of the government controlled Tartous province.[537] Sony PCG-41216M battery
Violations committed by the opposition
Since the beginning of the uprising in 2011, both the Free Syrian Army and broader opposition groups have committed human rights violations, according to reports.[538][539][540][541] The UN has accused them of human rights abuses including unlawful killing, torture, Sony PCG-41217M battery
Sony PCG-31112M battery kidnapping, and the use of children in dangerous non-combat roles.[507]:4–5 For example, a video documented a boy – between 12 and 14 years old – executing a prisoner by cutting his throat with a machete.[5
Sony PCG-31111M battery42] Human Rights Watch also reports evidence of rebels kidnapping civilians for ransom, as well as summary executions of army soldiers and numerous cases of torture.[543]
According to UN officials working in Jordanian refugee camps, about a half of Syrians who come back as recruits to fight within rebel forces, are under 18. Dell Latitude E6330 Battery The families of young fighters receive benefits from FSA, including cash salaries and priorities in distribution of food aid.[544] Dell Latitude E6430 Battery
The opposition came under criticism after a video was uploaded to YouTube of an opposition soldier eating the heart of a dead Syrian army soldier. The perpetrator called his act a revenge for abuse of civilians, which was allegedly recorded on the dead soldier's cell phone. Dell Latitude E6430s Battery A Syrian government official claimed that hundreds of cannibalistic acts by opposition forces had been documented, but did not provide any evidence.[545][546]
Jihadist groups are accused of violence against civilians who do not follow Sunni Islam. Christians report religious cleansing of their neighborhoods in Homs and Qsair as well as rapes and kidnappings for ransom.[54Dell Latitude E5220 Battery 7][548] Through the fighting, Islamist groups such as fighters from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria have lost support from international powers and Syrian citizens, reportedly over a "spate of abuse".[549] Dell Latitude E5420 Battery
Economy
By July 2013, the Syrian economy has shrunk 35 percent since the start of the conflict. Unemployment increased fivefold, the value of the Syrian currency decreased to one-sixth its pre-war value, and the public sector lost 15 billion US dollars.[550]
Crime wave Dell Latitude E5520 Battery
Doctors and medical staff treating injured rebel fighters and civilians in Aleppo
As the conflict has expanded across Syria, many cities have been engulfed in a wave of crime as fighting caused the disintegration of much of the civilian state, and many police stations stopped functioning. Rates of thievery increased, Dell Inspiron N3010 Batterywith criminals looting houses and stores. Rates of kidnappings increased as well. Rebel fighters were sighted stealing cars and destroying an Aleppo restaurant in which Syrian soldiers had eaten.[551] Dell Inspiron N3010D Battery
By July 2012, the human rights group Women Under Siege had documented over 100 cases of rape and sexual assault during the conflict, with many of these crimes believed to be perpetrated by the Shabiha and other pro-government militias. Dell Inspiron N5110 Battery
Victims included men, women, and children, with about 80% of the known victims being women and girls.[552] Dell Inspiron N3010R Battery
Criminal networks have been used by both the government and the opposition during the conflict. Facing international sanctions, the Syrian government relied on criminal organizations to smuggle goods and money in and out of the country. Dell Inspiron N301Z BatteryThe economic downturn caused by the conflict and sanctions also led to lower wages for Shabiha members. In response, some Shabiha members began stealing civilian properties, and engaging in kidnappings.[318] Dell Inspiron N301ZD Battery
Rebel forces sometimes relied on criminal networks to obtain weapons and supplies. Black market weapon prices in Syria's neighboring countries have significantly increased since the start of the conflict. To generate funds to purchase arms, Dell Inspiron N7010 Battery some rebel groups have turned towards extortion, stealing, and kidnapping.[318] Dell Inspiron N301ZR Battery
Main article: List of heritage sites damaged during Syrian civil war
The civil war has caused significant damage to Syria's cultural heritage, including World Heritage Sites. Destruction of antiquities has been caused by shelling, army entrenchment and looting at various tells, museums, and monuments.[55Dell Inspiron N3110 Battery
Cultural heritage
3] A group called Syrian Archaeological Heritage Under Threat is monitoring and recording the destruction in an attempt to create a list of heritage sites damaged during the war and gain global support for the protection and preservation of Syrian archaeology and architecture. Dell Inspiron N4010 Battery554] An air raid on Syria's famed Krak des Chevaliers castle, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has damaged one of the fortress's towers. Dell Inspiron N4010D Battery The footage shows a huge blast as a tower of the Crusader castle, which is built on a hill, appears to take a direct hit, throwing up large clouds of smoke and scattering debris in the air. Dell Inspiron N7010D BatteryThe Syrian Observatory for Human Rights could not confirm direct hits on the castle, Dell Inspiron N4010R Batterybut said there were reports of three air strikes in the area on Friday, 11 July 2013.[citation needed]
Art
The war has produced its own particular artwork. A late-Summer 2013 exhibition in London at the P21 Gallery was able to show some of this work.[555] Dell Inspiron N4050 BatterySpillover into Lebanon Dell Inspiron N7010R Battery
Further information: Syrian civil war spillover in Lebanon
The Syrian civil war has led to incidents of sectarian violence in northern Lebanon between supporters and opponents of the Syrian government, Dell Inspiron N4110 Battery
and armed clashes between Sunnis and Alawites in Tripoli.[556] Fighting between rebels and government forces has spilled into Lebanon on several occasions. The Syrian Air Force has conducted air strikes on targets in Lebanon, Dell Inspiron N5010 Battery
while rebels have launched rockets on Hezbollah targets.[557] Fighting between supporters of the Sunni sheikh Ahmed Al-Assir, Dell Inspiron N7110 Battery who is against Hezbollah's involvement in Syria, and the Lebanese army has killed at least 15 Lebanese army soldiers.[558] Dell Inspiron N5010D BatteryOn 23 August, a bomb went off outside a mosque in Tripoli, killing over 50. On 27 August a suspect in custody by the Lebanese police confessed to having been ordered by the Syrian government to carry out the bombings.[559] Dell Inspiron N5010R Battery