Recently, I read an enlightening article on Buzzfeed about a Syrian activist was was involved in the revolution from the beginning and who has witnessed the uprising shift from a democratic revolution to a radical Islamist revolution, reminiscent of the Iranian Revolution of the 70s.
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| Syrian Rebel Commander Interview on Political Objectives for Syria (Link to video below) |
I remember the early days of the Syrian revolution, when the revolutionaries were unarmed civilians desperate for a say in the matters that affect them most. Following the killing of countless unarmed civilians, the Syrian "rebels" were in dire need of weapons to protect themselves. President Obama was in the midst of an election, the United Nations was virtually held hostage by Russia's unwillingness to allow any meaningful resolution regarding Syria to pass and Syria was in a state of chaos.
A chaotic environment is one that radicals love to infiltrate and it's the perfect environment for radicalism to flourish. So, when the radical Islamist group ISIS (Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, a Al-Qaeda linked group) began to descend upon Syria, providing weapons for the defenseless revolutionaries, it was not a surprise that the revolutionaries accepted the "help." It is not hard to see why they would do that. If you had to find a way to save your own and your children's lives by arming yourself, would you question who the weapons came from in the heat of battle? I dare to say most people probably would not.
The anonymous Syrian activist who claims he now wants Assad to win, feels this way because Assad is the lesser of two evils. The activist reasons, whereas the radicals will use religion to justify taking away the freedoms of the people, Assad will have to make some concessions or changes if he is to be accepted by the people.
However, there is a possibility that Assad would crack down even harder, (using the excuse that he is fighting against terrorists) and all the innocent people who died in the pursuit of freedom would have died in vain. Then again, if the radicals take over and restrict people's freedoms as well, then those same victims would have also died in vain. This leads me to a few questions ... Has the Syrian revolution failed? Is there hope that the moderates can gain influence in Syria? Or will Syria become another Egypt, where the only options are secular oppression or radical repression?
Your basic premise - that the so-called "revolution" was peaceful and democratic in origin - is so demonstrably false (and that link is to an anti-Assad writer) that the rest of your article is contaminated by it beyond recovery. There never was a "peaceful" Syrian "revolution" any more than there was a "peaceful" Libyan "revolution"; and all Russia has done is stop Syria from becoming another Libya. By the way, Libya's doing very well these days, isn't it?
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