Then, as now, the U.S. had clear interests in Syria's fate, well beyond the war's terrible cost in human lives. Assad's brutal rule has helped spawn terrorist opposition groups, including Islamic State, which briefly ruled much of Syria and Iraq. An Assad victory could turn Syria into a permanent base for Iranian military units on Israel's northern border. (The country is already a base for Russia's navy on the Mediterranean.) … [Read more...] about Trump will launch a missile strike against Syria and declare the mission a success. Don’t believe it
Syria
Oil surges as Trump pledges Syria missile attack
Grant Smith, Bloomberg Updated 9:11 am, Wednesday, April 11, 2018 Photo: DON EMMERT, Staff Image 1of/1 CaptionClose Image 1 of 1 Tensions between the U.S. and Russia are rising as President Trump threatens retaliation against Syria following reports it used chemical weapons in a rebel-held area. Tensions between the U.S. and Russia are rising as President Trump threatens retaliation against Syria following reports it used chemical weapons in a rebel-held area. Photo: DON EMMERT, Staff Oil surges as Trump pledges Syria missile attack 1 / 1 Back to Gallery Futures in New York rose as much as 1.4 percent. That follows the biggest one-day jump in eight months on Tuesday as geopolitics reasserted their influence over the world's most important commodity. President Donald Trump has intensified preparations for a … [Read more...] about Oil surges as Trump pledges Syria missile attack
As Trump considers military action on Syria, Pentagon worries it could put Russian soldiers in the crosshairs
An aircraft carrier strike group, including the carrier Harry Truman as well as a guided-missile cruiser and four guided-missile destroyers, is due to leave Norfolk, Va., on Wednesday for the Middle East. But it won't be in position to launch attacks on Syria for at least a week, officials said. … [Read more...] about As Trump considers military action on Syria, Pentagon worries it could put Russian soldiers in the crosshairs
Why can’t America just take out Assad? The situation in Syria, explained
The Trump administration has done an abrupt about-face on Syria, contradicting its own nascent foreign policy. Within 24 hours, it went from calling out the Assad regime for using chemical weapons to launching missiles at military targets. As limited as the strikes were, there are also statements that plans are in the works to target Syrian President Bashar al-Assad: It “would seem there would be no role for him to govern the Syrian people,” U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said of Assad on April 6.As costly as inaction has been in the six years since the Arab Spring uprisings first took hold in Syria, recent history suggests that removing Assad in a hurry would be an even bigger mistake. In 16 years studying and working with complex conflicts like Syria, I have yet to see an exception to this rule. We know where this goes nextTargeting Assad would likely give birth to the same kind of catastrophe we saw in Libya after Muammar Gaddafi’s fall. In Libya, with no … [Read more...] about Why can’t America just take out Assad? The situation in Syria, explained
Amber Heard says meeting Syria refugees left indelible mark
AMMAN, Jordan — Actress Amber Heard said Thursday that encounters with Syrian refugees and foreign medical volunteers helping the displaced have left an “an indelible mark” on her soul. Heard, 31, spent a week in Jordan as part of a delegation of the Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS), visiting the kingdom’s largest camp for Syrian refugees and rehabilitation centers for those wounded in Syria’s seven-year-old civil war. In an interview, Heard said she knew little about the conflict before the trip, but that she had become friendly with a family of Syrian immigrants to the United States. During a recent holiday dinner, she said she raised a glass and toasted “my big, extended Syrian family for adopting the American, and that’s how I feel.” Heard said SAMS, a global medical relief organization, approached her to join a 53-member medical mission to Jordan, home to about 660,000 of some 5.5 million Syrian refugees. Most of the displaced … [Read more...] about Amber Heard says meeting Syria refugees left indelible mark