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Leiden University, History of the Modern Middle East, 2021-22

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Syrian civil war[change | change source]

The Syrian Civil War is an ongoing armed conflict in the Syrian Arab Republic that started in 2011 after the Syrian government violently stopped pro-democracy demonstrations in the city of Daraa.[1][2] Since then, it has developed to be one of the most internationalized and impactful conflicts in the history of the modern Middle East. [3] This article will deal with how this war came about, who are fighting in it and what its impact has been.

Background[change | change source]

The Syrian Civil War started on the 15th of March 2011 with demonstrations in Deraa, demanding the Ba'ath government to resign and stop Assad's authoritarian rule.[4][2] These demonstrations were the result of rising discontent among Syrian citizens regarding what Syria had become under the regime of president Bashar al-Assad.[1]Most importantly, Syrian citizens were mad about the political repression by Assad's regime.[1][5] The fact that the since 1971 ruling Assad family was Shia muslim, while the majority of Syrians were Sunni Muslim worsened this discontent. [6][5] Furthermore, economically Syria was not doing well in the years before the outbreak of the civil war; inequality was high, unemployment rates had increased and a heavy drought had made food and water scarce.[5]

The demonstrations in Daraa escalated after Syrian security forces reacted extremely violent, using water cannons, tear gas and live fire.[7] Consequently, demonstrations spread across the country, resulting in the killing or detention of hundreds of protestors. [8] This resulted in the beginning of an armed insurgency, starting with the formation of the Free Syrian Army in July 2011.[9] As the military opposition became increasingly stronger and more organized, the United Nations officially declared the Syrian uprising a civil war in December of 2011.[10]

Belligerents[change | change source]

Syrian actors[change | change source]

Firstly, the most important actor in the Syrian Civil War is the Syrian Armed Forces, under the control of the Syrian government. The Syrian Armed Forces are fighting in support of Assad's regime and against the armed opposition forces. Both the United Nations Human Rights Council and the Syria Network for Human Rights have concluded that the Syrian Armed Forces are guilty of the most and worst human rights abuses.[11] Following huge amounts of defections, the Syrian Armed Forces have since late 2015 depended largely on hired militias and volunteers from outside of Syria. [12][13]

Secondly, the opposition forces consist of a big number of factions, with the Free Syrian Army as an important coalition of several of these militias. The Free Syrian Army was founded by defecting Syrian Army officers with the goal to protect civilians and bring down the Syrian government.[9] It claimed to be "the military wing of the Syrian opposition".[14] Between 2011 and 2015, the Free Syrian Army lost most of its influence because of a lack of funding, fighting and rival Islamist groups.[15] After the Turkish military intervention in 2016, most of the Free Syrian Army became the Syrian National Army, also known as the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army.[16] The Syrian National Army became a coalition of opposition forces, coordinated and funded by Turkey.[17] The goals of the Syrian National Army are to fight Syrian government forces, the Syrian Democratic Forces and Islamist extremist forces, such as the Islamic State and Hay'at-Tahrir al-Sham.[18][19][20]

Thirdly, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is a military alliance governing the self-declared Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria.[21] The main goal is to establish a democratic and non-religious system in Syria. Therefore, they have mostly been fighting ISIL together with Western countries.[21] Furthermore, they are opposed to the Syrian National Army, as the Turkish forces consider the Kurdish leadership of the SDF a terrorist organization and actively fight them.[22][23]

Fourthly, numerous Islamist groups have been active in the Syrian Civil War. The most influential and effective of these groups has been the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). As of 2014, it effectively was in control of 30% of of Syria and 40% of Iraq.[24][25] ISIL has been fought by the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army, the Syrian Democratic Forces, the Syrian government forces and a US-led coalition of Western states.[26] Consequently, by 2017 it had lost 95% of its territory and in 2018 it was declared officially defeated by the United States.[25][27] ISIL has been widely known for its terroristic regime, including many human rights abuses.[28]

Foreign involvement[change | change source]

While the Syrian civil war started out as a civilian uprising, foreign actors quickly became involved. Currently, the Syrian Civil War must be described as several overlapping proxy wars.[29][30][31] The first one of these is between the United States and Russia.[29][31] Since 2015, Russia has been backing the Syrian government.[31] The main reason for this is that stability in the region will make it easier for Russia to exert its influence.[29] Furthermore, it is a perfect opportunity to display Russia's military capabilities.[29] On the other hand, the United States and NATO are involved in the Syrian Civil War mainly to counter this Russian influence in the MENA region.[29]

The second proxy war is between Iran and Saudi Arabia. Iran has supported the Syrian government since the start of the conflict. Reasons for this are that Iran and Syria have long been allies and the survival of the Syrian regime is essential for Iran's geopolitical interests. [32] Iran has supported the Syrian regime by providing military supplies, helping pro-Assad militias and sending Hezbollah troops. [32] Saudi Arabia on the other hand has since 2012 been funding and arming the rebels. [33] The main reason for this is to counter Iranian power and achieve regional dominance. [29]

Moreover, Turkey is an essential foreign actor in the Syrian Civil War. Turkey's main aim is to prevent the Syrian Democratic Forces from successfully create an autonomous state. As the leadership of the SDF, the Peoples Defense Unit (YPG), is largely Kurdish, the creation of an autonomous state would set an example for Kurds in Turkey.[29][23]This would threaten Turkey's territorial integrity. [29] Furthermore, Turkey considers the YPG to be a terrorist organization. [34] Throughout the war, Turkey has been a dominant force in Northern Syria, providing the opposition with military aid, building governance institutions and funding infrastructure projects. [35]

The United Kingdom and France have also been significant actors in the conflict, as they have been providing aid to several moderate opposition forces.[36][37]

Humanitarian impact[change | change source]

Throughout the conflict, several institutions have documented a multitude of grave human rights violations, among which are the Human Rights Watch, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Syrian Network for Human Rights. According to the United Nations, as of 2022 more than 12 million Syrians will be living in food insecurity and more than 14.6 million Syrians will be in need of humanitarian assistance. [38] This is worsened by Russia's invasion of Ukraine in March of 2022, as this hinders essential food imports. [39] Of the 14.6 million Syrians that are in need of humanitarian assistance, 1.48 million people are in catastrophic need, claims the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. [40] Above all that, the economic toll of the war has resulted in 90% of Syrians living under the poverty line as of 2022. [40]

According to the latest data of the Syrian Network for Human Rights, well over 225 000 civilians have died since the start of the conflict, among which are around 30 000 children. [41] Around 200 000 of these civilian deaths are the Syrian regime forces to blame for. [42]According to the UN Human Rights Council, the total death toll of the Syrian civil war is around 350 000, although this is almost certainly an undercount of the actual death toll [43]. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has claimed to have documented a much higher death toll, arguing that 610 000 people died since the start of the conflict, of which they have identified almost 500 000. [44] Furthermore, the UN Refugee Agency claims that 6.6 million Syrians have fled the country since 2011 and 6.7 million people are internally displaced. [45]

Furthermore, both the opposition and the government forces are guilty of committing acts that amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. [40] The Syrian-Russian alliance is guilty of most human rights violations, especially through indiscriminate attacks on civilian infrastructure. [40] However, the US-led coalition is also guilty of using indiscriminate weapons, though in much smaller numbers. [42] Also, Syrian government forces and militias continue to arbitrarily detain, torture, execute and make disappear Syrian civilians[40]. Since the beginning of the war, almost 15 000 Syrians have died of torture, and 100 000 Syrians are still missing. [41]


The United Nations claim the humanitarian crisis is still getting worse in 2022 and a peace agreement is far from being reached. [38][46] However, at the Brussels conference in 2022, international donors have agreed to provide Syria 6.7 billion USD for support and reconstruction. [47]

References[change | change source]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Why has the Syrian war lasted 11 years?". BBC News. 2022-03-15. Retrieved 2022-05-13.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Pro-democracy protests sweep Syria, 22 killed". Reuters. 2011-04-08. Retrieved 2022-05-13.
  3. ↑ Sorenson, David S. (2016). Syria in ruins: The dynamics of the Syrian Civil War. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, LLC.
  4. ↑ "Syrian Civil War - Uprising in Syria, 2011– | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2022-05-13.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "10 Factors That Led to the Syrian Uprising". ThoughtCo. Retrieved 2022-05-13.
  6. ↑ "Syria", The World Factbook, Central Intelligence Agency, 2022-05-10, retrieved 2022-05-15
  7. ↑ ""We've Never Seen Such Horror": Crimes against Humanity by Syrian Security Forces". 2011-06-01. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  8. ↑ Slackman, Michael (2011-03-25). "Syrian Troops Open Fire on Protesters in Several Cities". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-05-15.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Free Syrian Army Founded by Seven Officers to Fight the Syrian Army". Syria Comment. 2011-07-30. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  10. ↑ "UN: Syria now in a civil war". NBC News. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  11. ↑ sn4hrwebsite (2022-03-15). "On the 11th Anniversary of the Popular Uprising: 228,647 Syrian Civilians Documented Killed, Including 14,664 by Torture, with 151,462 Arbitrarily Detained/Forcibly Disappeared, and 14 Million Others Displaced". Syrian Network for Human Rights. Retrieved 2022-05-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  12. ↑ Worth, Robert F. (2016-04-26). A Rage for Order: The Middle East in Turmoil, from Tahrir Square to ISIS. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN 978-0-374-71071-2.
  13. ↑ "Reliable no more? The current state of the Syrian armed forces". Atlantic Council. 2020-09-22. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  14. ↑ "'15,000 strong' army gathers to take on Syria". www.telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  15. ↑ Banco, Erin (2015-03-14). "Four Years Later, The Free Syrian Army Has Collapsed". International Business Times. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  16. ↑ "Free Syrian Army transforms into Syrian National Army". www.aa.com.tr. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  17. ↑ "Turkey's Gradual Efforts to Professionalize Syrian Allies". Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  18. ↑ "The Syrian National Army: Structure, functions and three scenarios for its relationship with Damascus". October 2020.
  19. ↑ "The state of the Syrian National Army" (PDF). www.cartercenter.org. March 2022.
  20. ↑ "Who Are The Turkey-backed Syrian Rebels?". VOA. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Wilgenburg, Wladimir van (2020-11-10). "Syrian Democratic Forces (Syria) – Guns and governance: How Europe should talk with non-state armed groups in the Middle East – European Council on Foreign Relations". ECFR. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  22. ↑ "Who are the Syrian Democratic Forces?". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 "Turkey v Syria's Kurds: The short, medium and long story". BBC News. 2019-10-23. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  24. ↑ Walsh, Gul Tuysuz, Raja Razek, and Nick Paton. "Al Qaeda-linked group strengthens hold in northern Syria". CNN. Retrieved 2022-05-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 "Timeline: the Rise, Spread, and Fall of the Islamic State | Wilson Center". www.wilsoncenter.org. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  26. ↑ "Study Shows Islamic State's Primary Opponent in Syria Is Government Forces, IHS Markit Says | IHS Online Newsroom". web.archive.org. 2017-04-22. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  27. ↑ Landler, Mark; Cooper, Helene; Schmitt, Eric (2018-12-19). "Trump to Withdraw U.S. Forces From Syria, Declaring 'We Have Won Against ISIS'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  28. ↑ "ISIS | Human Rights Watch". www.hrw.org. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 29.2 29.3 29.4 29.5 29.6 29.7 Rieger, René (28 February 2017). "Syrian Civil War: limitations and preconditions for effective multilateralism in an evermore conflictual multipolar world" (PDF). Euromesco Policy Brief. 71: 1–10.
  30. ↑ "The Syrian Civil War's Never-Ending Endgame". www.worldpoliticsreview.com. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  31. ↑ 31.0 31.1 31.2 Douglas, Richard (2021-04-19). "Proxy Conflict Paradox: Why America and Russia are at War in Syria". The National Interest. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  32. ↑ 32.0 32.1 Fulton, Will; Holiday, Joseph; Weer, Sam (May 2013). "Iranian strategy in Syria" (PDF). Institute for the study of war and AEI's critical threats project.
  33. ↑ "Saudi Arabia and Qatar funding Syrian rebels". Reuters. 2012-06-23. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  34. ↑ "Turkey vs. the YPG: What's Next?". The Washington Institute. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  35. ↑ Yazici, Ezgi (30 December 2021). "Economic Volatility Undermines Turkish-backed Governance in Northern Syria". Institute for the Study of War.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  36. ↑ Curtis, Mark (2021-07-20). "DECLASSIFIED UK: Revealed: The UK has spent £350-million promoting regime change in Syria". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  37. ↑ étrangères, Ministère de l'Europe et des Affaires. "War in Syria: Understanding France's position". France Diplomacy - Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  38. ↑ 38.0 38.1 "'Hot conflict' pushes 12 million Syrians into food insecurity". UN News. 2022-02-25. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  39. ↑ "The Syrian Civil War's Never-Ending Endgame". www.worldpoliticsreview.com. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  40. ↑ 40.0 40.1 40.2 40.3 40.4 Human Rights Watch (2021-12-14), "Syria: Events of 2021", English, retrieved 2022-05-18
  41. ↑ 41.0 41.1 "Syrian Network for Human Rights". Syrian Network for Human Rights. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  42. ↑ 42.0 42.1 sn4hrwebsite (2022-03-15). "On the 11th Anniversary of the Popular Uprising: 228,647 Syrian Civilians Documented Killed, Including 14,664 by Torture, with 151,462 Arbitrarily Detained/Forcibly Disappeared, and 14 Million Others Displaced". Syrian Network for Human Rights. Retrieved 2022-05-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  43. ↑ "Syria: 10 years of war has left at least 350,000 dead". UN News. 2021-09-24. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  44. ↑ "Syrian Revolution 11 years on | SOHR documents by names nearly 161,000 civilian deaths, including 40,500 children and women • The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights". The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights. 2022-03-15. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  45. ↑ "Syria emergency". UNHCR. Retrieved 2022-05-18. {{cite web}}: |first= missing |last= (help)
  46. ↑ "Fears grow for Syria amid rising violence, deepening humanitarian crisis". UN News. 2022-03-09. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  47. ↑ Chehayeb, Kareem. "Donors pledge $6.7bn in aid for Syrians". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
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