History has seen various wars: six-day war between Israel and Egypt, Syria, Jordan, and Iraq in 1967, four years were taken by the Great Patriotic war in the Soviet Union, and there was a hundred years war that occurred between England and France in 1337-1453. But regardless of the timing, the psyche of a human taking part in war, can survive only 45 days, according to psychologists. And how does the psyche of a civilian exist in the combat zone? Endless war fatigue – that’s how you can describe this condition – is well known to Soviet citizens, survivors of the Great Patriotic war, and nowadays inhabitants of Donbass, where it has been already a two year armed confrontation. And an enormous number of Syrians who have lived almost six years at war, know that.
“Powder keg” exploded
In the year 2011, the situation in Syria deteriorated. They speak about all sorts of reasons, including drought that happened just before and for many Syrians it was the beginning of the crisis. But, then, even in peaceful, strong country it was possible to solve these life force majeures via actions of civilian nature. But the conflict laboratories developed the so-called “Arab spring” with different color options that swept over several neighboring countries. Anti-Government speeches began also in Syria, then came the clashes of protesters with police and army, then opposition formed rapidly, and they took weapons. The reports of casualties came every day. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad started to look for compromises and even dissolved the Government in response to the opposition actions. But the opposition in response to the actions of the President equips their fighting forces, they are supported by Western countries that threaten sanctions if President al-Assad doesn’t depart from his post and applies force to restore order in the country. With such a strong support, the opposition doesn’t even think of compromises proposed by the President of Syria; on the contrary, it announces Free Syrian Army and unleashes full armed hostilities against the Government army, security forces, officials and civilians. Immediately radical islamists get involved, they are flocking to the sites of clashes literally from every crack. And that’s how the war began.
European countries, the United States, some neighboring countries in the region openly support the armed opposition, unwilling to notice that under its banners terrorists of all kinds get together. Some countries impose sanctions against the legal Government of Syria. The success of the military action, already seems inevitable to the opposition: they’ve captured several towns and provinces in the outskirts of the capital Damask, they are storming the country’s second largest city Aleppo. And it seems that the whole region has divided into enemies of Syria and its supporters. Turkey has started to openly support the opposition, actually joining the war. A little later the Turkish Parliament allows the use of the army against Syria. But the Syrian Government and Bashar al-Assad is joined by Iran, Libya – the Syrian troops become supported by armed squads of Hezbollah. But opposition forces get supported by islamists including al-Qaeda and other radical organizations forbidden in many countries. In Syrian cities controlled by the official authorities, constant attacks happen, islamists organize public executions of captured Syrian soldiers, and other prisoners. Their task is to spread terror, despair, chaos, to subdue the inhabitants of captured Syrian territories. And it seems that they’ve succeeded.
But Syria like the Persian Gulf in whole, is a very difficult region, not by chance, together with the Balkans for centuries it was called a “powder keg” – just one flake of fire and this huge territory will explode. And so it happened, the conflict within Syria quickly became a scene of confrontation among different forces. The fight included the armed forces of the Kurds, people living in the east of Syria, part of Iraq and Turkey.
But already by 2014 year the situation has changed – the troops of the oppositional Free Syrian army virtually ceased to play any role in the war in Syria, although they are still supported by the European Union and the United States, including cash and weaponry. But the war on the Government forces of Syria is lead by the radical islamists, who got new blood from different countries, including Europe. Jabhat al-Nusra organization and troops of ISIS (or Daesh) banned in many countries around the world, already control a significant part of Syria and Iraq. After the capture of one of the largest Iraqi cities Mosul and several other towns in Iraq and Syria, the radical islamists announce the establishment of the Islamic State with strict Sharia law. And ISIS became one of the most powerful and violent organizations in the modern world.
Sink or swim
The war in Syria seemed to never end. Six years of violence: deaths, executions, severe confrontation in front of humankind. The instigators of the war, those who tried to divide the Syrian people into different sides of the barricades, need Syria only to get resources, with all its huge reserves of gas, oil, gas and oil pipelines from Qatar and Yemen, there’s so much resources that it’s enough to feed the whole Europe for several centuries. This terrible war is again a war for resources. And they don’t care about the people of Syria, they don’t care about torment, deaths, victims. According to the specialists, the conflict on the territory of Syria has already killed over two hundred twenty thousand people.
And in this situation Syrian President Bashar al-Assad requests assistance from Russia. The powerful units of fighters from radical organizations are opposed by Russian aerospace forces and naval groups. And along with the ongoing conflict, diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict are continued. Several stages of negotiations between official Syrian authorities and representatives of moderate opposition in Geneva, initiated by the leadership of the EU, got stuck. In mid-March this year the third international meeting on Syria took place in Astana. And most observers agree that negotiations in the Kazakh capital finally moved the issue of the war in Syria end. The primary role of guarantor of the negotiations is now played by the geopolitical axis Russia-Turkey-Iran. The negotiation process continues, albeit in Astana it is quite difficult.
And already it is clear to all observers that if all the Syrians do not take up the matter of establishing order in the country no external negotiations can help. And it seems that the Syrians now understand it better than anybody else. Reports are coming from Syria informing that the establishment of a new socio-political movement “Syrian people’s front” is ongoing. There are already negotiations with prospective members of the new movement including: Free Syrian Army, paramilitary opposition Jaysh al-Islam (which is a part of Free Syrian Army), Syrian bedouin tribes led by their chiefs, various religious groups, Social Democratic Party and the Youth Party of Syria, Syria’s ruling circles and their surroundings, various expert communities, parliamentary opposition, Christian and Muslim communities.
The main objective of this movement, by the way, fully coincide with the UN Security Council resolution No. 2254 – preservation of the integrity of the country in the existing boundaries, taking into account the interests of all Syrian citizens, all ethnic and religious groups, participation of people in the political process, bringing order and peace, and, of course, the elimination of terrorism. If the combination of Syrian community, ethnic, religious, political forces really happens, if the official Syrian Government, and the President himself, join it, the Syrian people’s front will become the most real threat for terrorists and forces attempting to break Syria as a state.
Endless war fatigue
Gaming strategies have such a term – “war fatigue” which is measured in points of war fatigue. Experienced players noticed that the war fatigue is completely forgotten after twenty moves in peace and can be recovered fully if next war does not begin before those twenty moves. But life complicates that all. It is hard to forget the war, virtually impossible even after several generations of citizens – their memory will keep it as a war, deadly, terrible, monstrous… It will be slightly easier when after the war people unite not to forget the war but to rebuild the country, to build peaceful life and try to make more peaceful moves so that no war, no terrorists have a new chance. The war fatigue of Syrian people is overwhelming and therefore we see a serious and strong intention to unite all Syrian people under the banner of a new socio-political movement “Syrian people’s front”. And most importantly, this initiative came not from somewhere above or from abroad, it came from the very depths of the Syrian people.
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