Syria under Bashir Assad (closed end 2014)

The title comes from an article in The Guardian. We have steadily grown used to the role of foreign jihadis in the Syrian civil war; this time it is the reaction of Syrians - outside state controlled areas - who get quoted:http://www.theguardian.com/world/201...P=share_btn_tw

A WaPo article on a vexed issue here, Syrian regime manpower and the title does suggest the content:

Quote:

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Desperate for soldiers, Assad’s government imposes harsh recruitment measures

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Link:http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/...33b_story.html

Not by me, rather Professor Joshua Landis, a US academic and IIRC sometimes criticised here:http://www.joshualandis.com/blog/yea...ecember-2014/?

He opens with:

Quote:

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Syria will become increasingly fragmented in 2015. The Somalia-ization of the country is inevitable so long as the international community degrades all centers of power in Syria and the opposition fails to unite.

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I found it coherent and sadly realistic.

This thread has run since August 2012, with 81.8k views and 834 posts. It is appropriate now as 2015 looms (in the UK) that it be closed and a new thread started.

The new thread, refelcting my previous post, is called 'Syria: the next Somalia?'.