Last Friday, in a village near the Syrian town of Houla, a horrifying massacre unfolded. After government forces attacked an opposition rally, they shelled the town and then sent in the shabiha, the notorious Alawite-dominated, pro-government militia that carries out the same role in Syria as Serbian goon squads did during the Bosnian civil war. The shabiha went door to door, killing people either by shooting them or slitting their throats. At least 108 people were killed, among them 49 children and 34 women.
Given the terrible nature of these atrocities, the response from what is known as the international community is almost comically ineffectual. The UN Security Council voted to condemn the massacre–but not to do anything about it. Now UN Special Envoy Kofi Annan has traveled to Syria to try to “salvage” his ineffectual peace plan. He thunders from his high perch:
“I urge the government to take bold steps to signal that it is serious in its intention to resolve this crisis peacefully, and for everyone involved to help create the right context for a credible political process.”
Were this quote not contained in the New York Times, I could swear that it came from the Onion–it is such a pitch-perfect parody of the weasel words that international bureaucrats use to avoid assuming responsibility for doing something about an assault on human rights. (What steps could the government of Syria possibly take to convince Annan that it’s NOT serious about resolving “this crisis peacefully,” short of using chemical weapons on the protesters?) Only it’s not a parody.
And nor is this Times headline: “U.S. Hopes Assad Can Be Eased Out With Russia’s Aid.” The administration must be living in some alternative universe if it thinks that Russia–Syria’s second-closest ally (after Iran) and one of its chief sources of weapons–will suddenly turn on the Assad regime after having stood by it during the massacres of the past year.
All of the attention being devoted to such dead-end diplomatic initiatives is simply indicative of the fundamental lack of seriousness in Washington regarding events in Syria. President Obama may have created an Atrocities Prevention Board, but he is doing nothing serious to prevent the ongoing atrocities in Syria.
Can it be that some problems have no good solutions? n nAre we ready for a US occupation of Syria? Or a NATO occupation? n nCan the arab league even dream of taking on Assad's military without western involvement? n nAnd who comes after Assad? n nBetter? n nDo you think they will not revenge themselves upon the Alawites? n nOne side probably has to be beaten, and beaten so well that it will not think of fighting for 5 generations. That is how wars were fought until very recently (and it is the only solution to the Arab/Israeli confilict as well). n nAny western involvement is like placing a paper bra on Dolly Parton. It won't hold, and we'll be back to where we started very shortly.
Better to have Kofi Anan's feather dance covering the naked impotence of US policy.
The Alawites are a marked community. Maybe not this week or next but the tides are turning against them.
There is one benefit to all this aside from showing how ineffectual diplomacy is in dealing with Iran, Syria, Hezbollah, Russia axis. The benefit is that it will push the Israelis into taking action before waiting for the farcical diplomatic efforts of the EU and the United States to whimper out with regards to Iran. They've got to understand by now that Obama and the United States are in full retreat, The EU and the UN are completely useless, and the slaughter of innocents will continue until Israel takes the axis on directly. We and the Europeans have no stomach for it and Putin is doing all he can to restart the Cold War. As the expression goes, the Russians will push on until they meet cold steel and someone with a spine to match. Netanyahu seems to be the only world leader who's got the stomach for it. Obama and Clinton certainly don't.
Would be a good time to revisit the action of President Reagan in response to Moammar Gadhafi when Libya was an active sponsor of terrorism. One well appointed cruise missile well placed would convince Assad (or hopefully, his successor) that heinous crime will not be tolerated. We haven't spent billions on weapon systems to stand by and watch while innocents are slaughtered. Inaction is not an option that decent people should support. Our current president has a pathetic list of accomplishments. Even if he is not willing to do the right thing for the right reason, one would think it occurs to him that ceaseless crowing about the Bin Laden raid is not by itself going to get him to November.
Why do people always jump to the conclusion that U.S. options on Syria amount a full invasion or complete inaction? This kind of rhetoric is designed to muddy the water and produce paralysis. n nThere is plenty that the U.S. could (and should) be doing in Syria short of direct, military action. If we had anything like a real intelligence agency (which we don't), we would have sorted out the various factions and leaders and be well on the way to at least tentatively supporting the more pro-Western elements of the rebellion with weapons, medicines, communications gear and various intel on Assad's forces (not to mention what we can glean about the Islamists increasingly infiltrating Syria). n nSyria is in full blown civil war and it is ugly and it's going to get *alot* uglier before it gets any better. The U.S. does no one any favors by sitting around, wringing its hands and watching while the Iranians, Russians, Saudis, Qataris and Al Qaeda all jockey for influence and power in what will certainly be, someday, a post-Assad Syria. No one knows what the outcome will be. No one. But if the U.S. doesn't quickly become a player, it is certain that we will not like the outcome and, worse, will be helpless to do anything about it. n nThe massacres of civilians by Assad were absolutely predictable and inevitable and those politicians like President Obama and the UN ilk are entirely to blame for playing diplomatic games when Assad might have been toppled months ago with a strong show of support to the Free Syrian Army (at least the factions that we favor). n nBut let's not pretend that civilian casualties somehow force us to commit militarily to Syria. The U.S. didn't do that in far worse circumstances like Sudan, North Korea, Iran or Uganda. Involvement must be guided by clear, U.S. national interests. Thankfully, there is ample U.S. interest in intervention that can also prevent a re-occurrence of the Houla massacre.
Max – we're all still waiting for the ineffectual international community to put Bush & Co. (including yourself) on trial for war crimes regarding Iraq, not to mention Libya. I am also pulling out my hair trying to find your equally vocal condemnation of the NATO strike in Afghanistan this same week that murdered a family of 8, including 6 children. I can't seem to find it. n nAlso, I think Commentary Magazine edited your post – I can't seem to find any of the citations or links providing evidence of your claim that the militants responsible for Houla were "shabiha" and not NATO-Gulf death squads. n nBrookings Middle East Memo #23 clearly states that the West seeks to arm and fund the militants to "bleed" Syria, knowing full well it will not end the violence – but perpetuate it. Answering the question of cui bono? in regards to Houla, implicated NATO, not Syria. n nThis is to achieve regime change – not defend "human rights." You have lied Mr. Boot, as your ilk continuously do to inch humanity into war after war. Surely there is a law against conspiring against world peace – just as there are laws for violating world peace with wars of aggression – punishable by death, if the Nazi Nuremberg trials serve as a precedence.
You're pacifism predictably turns you into an apologist for literal butchery of children. Your "ilk" confuse the world with the Neverland of Peter Pan. And, naturally, we have another juvenilely obscene charge that the United States and Commentary magazine, not the Assad regime, is guilty of, what else, Nuremberg crimes. Hopefully you and your friends will acquire some wisdom on your Bar Mitzvah. Oh, so hows that Ron Paul thing working out? I know! School's out so you and your friends can Occupy Max Boot.!!!!
Enter text right here!There is no reason for any civilized nation or community to prevent Arabs from killing one another. nEvery time an Arab catches a bullet, an angel gets its wings!