N.W.BOYER…Christian Author

Posts tagged “death

What is the Syrian crisis all about?

Syrian child AP picture

Syrian Child Photo Credit AP

As the world becomes extremely tense and upset over the situation in Syria, the average person probably wonders what this is all about.  The horrors of it, with chemical attacks on little children and civilians, make it a matter of total world concern.  What is happening in Syria could happen in any country.

The best explanation with charts and statistics that I have seen so far is the following article posted by the BBC  (British Broadcasting Company).   At the end of this article is the question….”Will this war ever end?”   That question is a hard one and is probably on everyone’s mind.


Why is there a war in Syria?

  • 15 March 2018
A father reacts after the death of two of his children by shellfire in the rebel-held al-Ansari area of Aleppo, Syria (3 January 2013)Image credit by REUTERS  

A peaceful uprising against the president of Syria seven years ago has turned into a full-scale civil war. The conflict has left more than 350,000 people dead, devastated cities and drawn in other countries.

How did the Syrian war start?

Anti-government protesters on the streets of the Syrian city of Deraa on 23 March 2011Image credit AFP 

Even before the conflict began, many Syrians were complaining about high unemployment, corruption and a lack of political freedom under President Bashar al-Assad, who succeeded his late father Hafez in 2000.

In March 2011, pro-democracy demonstrations erupted in the southern city of Deraa, inspired by the “Arab Spring” in neighboring countries.

When the government used deadly force to crush the dissent, protests demanding the president’s resignation erupted nationwide.

The unrest spread and the crackdown intensified. Opposition supporters took up arms, first to defend themselves and later to rid their areas of security forces. Mr Assad vowed to crush what he called “foreign-backed terrorism”.

The violence rapidly escalated and the country descended into civil war.

How many people have died?

Child in hospital in Eastern GhoutaImage credit by GETTY 

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group with a network of sources on the ground, had documented the deaths of 353,900 people by March 2018, including 106,000 civilians.

The figure did not include 56,900 people who it said were missing and presumed dead. The group also estimated 100,000 deaths had not been documented.

Graphic showing the 353,900 people killed and 56,900 missing in the Syrian civil war, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights,
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It had documented 185,980 battle-related deaths, including 119,200 civilians, by February 2018.

Charts showing the 185,980 battle-related deaths recorded by the Violations Documentation Center broken down by cause
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What is the war about?

Children in Eastern Ghouta, SyriaImage credit AFP

It is now more than a battle between those for or against Mr. Assad.

Many groups and countries – each with their own agendas – are involved, making the situation far more complex and prolonging the fighting.

They have been accused of fostering hatred between Syria’s religious groups, pitching the Sunni Muslim majority against the president’s Shia Alawite sect.



Syria’s Kurds, who want the right of self-government but have not fought Mr Assad’s forces, have added another dimension to the conflict.

Who’s involved?

Free Syrian Army fightersImage credit REUTERS

The government’s key supporters are Russia and Iran, while the US, Turkey and Saudi Arabia back the rebels.

Russia – which already had military bases in Syria – launched an air campaign in support of Mr. Assad in 2015 that has been crucial in turning the tide of the war in the government’s favor.

The Russian military says its strikes only target “terrorists” but activists say they regularly kill mainstream rebels and civilians.

Iran is believed to have deployed hundreds of troops and spent billions of dollars to help Mr. Assad.

Thousands of Shia Muslim militiamen armed, trained and financed by Iran – mostly from Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement, but also Iraq, Afghanistan and Yemen – have also fought alongside the Syrian army.

The US, UK, France and other Western countries have provided varying degrees of support for what they consider “moderate” rebels.

A global coalition they lead has also carried out air strikes on IS militants in Syria since 2014 and helped an alliance of Kurdish and Arab militias called the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) capture territory from the jihadists.

Turkey has long supported the rebels but it has focused on using them to contain the Kurdish militia that dominates the SDF, accusing it of being an extension of a banned Kurdish rebel group in Turkey.

Saudi Arabia, which is keen to counter Iranian influence, has also armed and financed the rebels.

Israel, meanwhile, has been so concerned by shipments of Iranian weapons to Hezbollah in Syria that it has conducted air strikes in an attempt to thwart them.

How has the country been affected?

Children fleeing Eastern GhoutaImage credit AFP 


At least 6.1 million Syrians are internally displaced, while another 5.6 million have fled abroad.

Chart showing the 6.1 million Syrians internally displaced and the 5.6 million who are now refugees
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Neighboring Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey, where 92% of them now live, have struggled to cope with one of the largest refugee exoduses in recent history.

The UN estimates 13.1 million people will require some form of humanitarian help in Syria in 2018.

The warring parties have made the problems worse by refusing aid agencies access to many of those in need. Almost 3 million people live in besieged or hard-to-reach areas.

Map showing where Syrian refugees have fled to
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Syrians also have limited access to healthcare.

Physicians for Human Rights had documented 492 attacks on 330 medical facilities by the end of December 2017, resulting in the deaths of 847 medical personnel.

Chart showing 492 attacks on medical facilities by the end of December 2017, resulting in the deaths of 847 medical personnel

Much of Syria’s rich cultural heritage has also been destroyed. All six of the country’s six Unesco World Heritage sites have been damaged significantly.

Entire neighborhoods have been leveled across the country.

INTERACTIVE See how Jobar, Eastern Ghouta, has been destroyed

February 2018

Satellite image shows many buildings have been destroyed in the residential neighbourhood of Jowbar

August 2013

Satellite image shows part of the residential neighbourhood of Jowbar in 2013

A recent UN assessment found 93% of buildings had been damaged or destroyed in one district of the rebel-held Eastern Ghouta region near Damascus.

How is the country divided?

A boy in the besieged town of Douma, Eastern GhoutaImage credit REUTERS 

The government has regained control of Syria’s biggest cities but large parts of the country are still held by rebel groups and the Kurdish-led SDF alliance.

The largest opposition stronghold is the north-western province of Idlib, home to more than 2.6 million people.

Map showing territory control in Syria
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Despite being designated a “de-escalation zone”, Idlib is the target of an offensive by the government, which says it is targeting jihadists linked to al-Qaeda.

A ground assault is also underway in the Eastern Ghouta. Its 393,000 residents have been under siege by the government since 2013, and are facing intense bombardment as well as severe shortages of food and medical supplies.

The SDF meanwhile controls most territory east of the River Euphrates, including the city of Raqqa. Until 2017, it was the de facto capital of the “caliphate” proclaimed by IS, which now controls only a few pockets across Syria.

Will the war ever end?

Eastern Ghouta under bombardmentImage credit AFP 

It does not look like it will any time soon but everyone agrees a political solution is required.

The UN Security Council has called for the implementation of the 2012 Geneva Communique, which envisages a transitional governing body “formed on the basis of mutual consent.

But nine rounds of UN-mediated peace talks – known as the Geneva II process – since 2014 have shown little progress.

President Assad has appeared increasingly unwilling to negotiate with the opposition. The rebels still insist he must step down as part of any settlement.

Meanwhile, Western powers have accused Russia of undermining the peace talks by setting up a parallel political process.

The so-called Astana process saw Russia host a “Congress of National Dialogue” in January 2018. However, most opposition representatives refused to attend.