Home » Blog Style Listing Example » Spring revolution

Spring revolution

SYRIA – Spring revolution – Beginning of the end or end of beginning?

Syria is in the midst of an extremely violent civil war which has claimed the lives of over one hundred thousand people and caused over two million refugees to flee the country. Half of which are children. The killing started back in April 2011 after civilians carried out peaceful protests, inspired by earlier revolutions that took place in  both Egypt and Tunisia. Their aim was to challenge the dictatorship running the country, though few could have  anticipated the Government’s response to the protests. It was the terrorising and slaughtering of civilians that escalated the situation as quickly as it did, leading to a fully-fledged civil war in Syria.Whilst for a time it looked like the rebel groups were gaining ground, recent actions have suggested that the Assad regime are in no mood to back down. Whether this is the end of the beginning or the beginning of the end is really hard to say. It almost feels like there is no end in sight.

6963132313_5317f4c4c6Around 1.1 million Syrian children are now refugees.

Geneva II

The Geneva II conference will take place on 22nd the purpose of finding a way to end the violence in Syria. Talks will include both the Assad regime and parts of  the opposition. Whilst the aim is for the parties to reach a mutual ceasefire and forge a political settlement to end  the civil war, which has lasted almost three years, many believe this to be too optimistic. As it currently stands there is a worry that the opposition will not uphold their end of the deal, especially with some groups publically  stating that they will not be bound to any agreements reached at the conference. It is unlikely that the Assad regime will commit to ceasefire or any form of agreement when there are already threats of undermining the talks before they have even begun. With so many competing sides, negotiations will be a definite struggle.

Syria’s children

International inspectors are currently trying to ensure that Syria eliminates its chemical weapons by the middle of 2014. Whilst other countries have devoted a great deal of time and energy to securing the chemical weapons, unfortunately the same cannot be said for taking care of Syria’s children. Over two million refugees have fled areas of conflict, with more than 1.1 million of refugees aged under eighteen. According to United Nationals officials, the number of Syrian refugees is expected to climb as high as four million in 2014.It is Syria’s children who are suffering the most. They are paying for a war that they did not create and one that holds little hope for their future. Refugee children do not have access to education and those trapped in cut-off  areas of Damascus are facing malnutrition, disease and starvation. The situation in these cut off areas which include suburbs of Damascus has got so bad that an imam has issued  a fatwa allowing residents to eat cats and dogs in a desperate attempt to prevent starvation. For months these cut off areas have been under siege by the Assad regime which has prevented them from having access to food and medical supplies. Tens of thousands of people are trapped in these areas, with some living under siege for more than a year. They have run out of food and in recent weeks have been forced to survive on stray animals, old carcasses, tree leaves and weeds.

6961628319_7935a81682There needs to be a greater focus on the children of Syria. They deserve a future.

Children are paying the price for something they had absolutely no involvement in. More needs to be done by other countries to ensure that this generation has a secure future, as if war is all they know, it is feared that there
will be no end in sight.