By Abdulsalam Khoja
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – Thirteen years ago, protests were held in Syria’s southern governorate of Daraa after a child called Mo’awiyah al-Siyasinah wrote slogans against the Syrian government on a school’s wall. The protests quickly spread to other governorates.
On March 15 of every year, Syrians commemorate the early days of the protests that later led to the killing of thousands and the emigration of millions in addition to massive destruction of infrastructure. Moreover, the conflict led to the involvement of armed groups and foreign countries in Syria the matter led the issue to be more complicated and has not been solved yet.
On Feb. 15, 2011, Syrian government forces in the city of Daraa arrested children on the background of anti-government slogans that were written on the wall of the al-Araba’in school in Daraa al-Balad neighborhood. The children, including Mo’awiyah al-Siyasinah, were taken to the Political Security Directorate where they were investigated and tortured.
The incident paved the way for protests that were held in the city demanding to know the fate of the children, but the then head of the Political Security Directorate, Atef Najib, asked the protesters to go back and forget about their children, and to “give birth to new children.”
March 15 is known as the start of the Syrian protests. The first protest was held by activists of civil society in the al-Hamidiyeh Souq in Damascus. At the time, the protesters chanted slogans related to freedom, but the government forces attacked them and arrested a number of the activists.
On March 18, the cities of Damascus, Homs, Deir ez-Zor, Daraa and Baniyas witnessed protests under the name of Dignity Friday.
Later, other towns and cities respectively joined the protests. The government forces kept to suppress them through arresting the protesters or opening fire on them.
The funeral of the killed turned into peaceful protests demanding freedom, dignity and changing the “Syrian regime”. While the government forces raided the houses, arrested the protesters, and set up checkpoints inside and out of the cities. The slogans of freedom and dignity turned into “toppling the regime”.
ISIS and foreign interference
In 2014, the Islamic State group (ISIS) took control over large swaths of Syria and Iraq, and launched fierce attacks against civilians. In September of the same year, the United States, Bahrain, Jordan, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar announced war against ISIS in both Syria and Iraq.
The city of Kobani was the first arena of the Global Coalition’s strikes against the group. In 2019, following years of military operations, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Global Coalition managed to defeat ISIS in Syria.
The SDF holds more than 25% of the Syrian territory including the governorates of Deir ez-Zor, Raqqa and Hasakah. And there are in Syria 900 American soldiers who provide support for the SDF in combating ISIS sleeper cells.
Turkish aggression
Since 2016, Turkish forces, along with their affiliated armed opposition factions aka the Syrian National Army (SNA), have launched several military operation on northern Syria. Those operation led the Turkish forces to occupy the border strip in Aleppo eastern, northern and western countryside including the cities of Jarablus, al-Bab, Azaz and Afrin.
The Turkish forces also occupied a 120-m-area between the cities of Tel Abyad and Sere Kaniye (Ras al-Ain) in 2019 following a military operation dubbed the “Peace Spring”.
In the past years, more than 63,000 Russian soldiers took part in the military operations along with the Syrian government forces, according to Russian reports.
There are also militias affiliated with Iran in several areas in Deir ez-Zor Governorate, Damascus and other areas.
Meetings with no solutions
With the aim to find a political solution that may bring the war in Syria to an end, dozens of meetings were held including the meetings of the Constitutional Committee in Geneva and Astana.
Between 2012 and 2017, eight conference on the Syrian conflict were held in Geneva under UN auspices but to no avail. Since January 2017, 21 meetings of Astana Peace Talks have been held, but with no signs of solution.
On the 13th anniversary of the Syrian conflict, Syrians are still looking forward to find a solution that may bring the war to an end.
In a statement issued by U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres on March 9, 16.7 million people, equivalent to 70 percent of the total Syrian population, will need humanitarian assistance in 2024.