Syria

On Friday I mentioned the now completed “Conference for Change” held by the Syrian opposition in Antalya, Turkey. The conference was very important for a variety of reasons. Today I want to expand a bit on why that conference was so important, who exactly was there, dissect the final statement issued by the conference, and […]

So the outcome of the Syrian uprising is not as clear cut as I would have had you believe a few short weeks ago. The opposition has rallied and is once again putting some pretty serious pressure on the Assad regime. Protestors took to the streets in significant numbers today. The numerous arms of the […]

“President Assad now has a choice: He can lead that transition, or get out of the way.” This is the key phrase of President Barack Obama’s speech regarding Syria. Yawn. I can’t say it came as a big surprise, but this speech was largely a waste of time, and a missed opportunity, especially when looked at […]

May 15th is a complicated day in the Middle East, and this year was no different. While Israel marks its independence day, Palestinians mourn the Nakba, or catastrophe. In years past there have usually been protests of a relatively low intensity, a few marches and a few protestors, heavy on slogans and low on impact. […]

Another friday of protests has come and gone: Assad is still in power, however, many protests continue. The past week has seen a raising of rhetorical stakes from the West, despite the fact that the West is pretty much powerless to do anything. US Secretary of State Clinton suggested that the US is closer to declaring […]

The one issue that seems to be getting thrown under the bus, and what might just be most important in the Syrian context, is the issue of class.

This week has seen the chances of success for the Syrian opposition go from slim to none. The revolutionary moment has passed and the Assad regime is no longer in immediate danger of being deposed by the Syrian protest movement. Protests will continue in pockets of ongoing resistance, however, the regime has succeeded in isolating […]

For the third friday in a row, casualty numbers have declined in ongoing Syrian protests. It would appear that the large scale preemptive arrests carried out by the government over the previous days have been successful in keeping protest numbers down. Reports also indicate that the international Red Cross/Red Crescent has been given access to […]

As unrest continues to grip Syria, and opposing viewpoints continue to battle it out over the airwaves, in the pages of newspapers and magazines, and over the interwebs, let’s try to take a look at some of what is going on; both in Syria, and in the battle to frame what is happening there, shall […]

The past few days have been telling in the ongoing struggle to determine Syria’s future. At this stage last week, momentum seemed to be building for the opposition as demonstrations gained numbers and force by the week. Certainly there are still significant elements working towards the downfall of the Assad regime, both in the streets and […]

This humble blogger suggests everyone simmer down a bit. Yes, the violence used by the Syrian government against its own citizens is deplorable. That violence could, of course, get worse. But let us try to keep some perspective on this.

The following piece was originally published in Washington Times on Wednesday, April 27, 2011 by Gary C. Gambill Gary C. Gambill is the former editor of Middle East Intelligence Bulletin and Mideast Monitor. Since the outbreak of the Syrian uprising five weeks ago, President Obama has declined to call for Bashar Assad to step down […]