Syria has one thing going for it today: the world cares.  If it continues on its course, if civil and internecine war continue “building down” Syrian infrastructure and social structure along lines more familiar to Mogadishu than Damascus, the world — the communities of the caring and of the politicos — may shift attention to containing the meltdown while letting the fighting move around in its own wasteland.

The UN had this to say today:

Since fighting began in March 2011 between the Syrian Government and opposition groups seeking to oust President Bashar Al-Assad as many as 100,000 people have been killed, almost 2 million have fled to neighbouring countries and a further 4 million have been internally displaced. In addition, at least 6.8 million Syrian require urgent humanitarian assistance, half of whom are children.

UN News Centre.  “Syria at risk of sliding further into chaos, senior UN officials tell Security Council.”  July 16, 2013.

I’ve little to add to that except, perhaps, to call the Syrian Devolution a war between criminals, brigands, liars, and thieves, from the top offices of the state right down to its blood-spattered fields and streets.

Aid groups and United Nations officials are pleading with the Syrian government and armed opposition groups to allow access to unarmed civilians, saying crimes against humanity “are the rule” as fighting rages on in the Syrian civil war.

VOA News.  “UN Officials: War Crimes Now ‘The Rule’ in Syria.”  July 16, 2013.

Salim Idris may be the one decent presence on the ground in Syria, but he is bucking atop a wild horse badgered or infiltrated by Al Qaeda / Taliban-type (“Islamist”) fighters.

There are times I wonder why “unarmed civilians” remain unarmed and “moderate rebel units” seem unable to prove themselves as vicious and ruthless as the immoderate forces that have appeared to undermine them.

I’ve updated reference at the top of a recent post, “Syria Taliban–Brief Aggregation,” (July 15, 2013) as the more stable governments involved seem to be missing intelligence, or trying to catch up, within the Syrian theater.

Reference

Dettmer, Jamie.  “WFP Seeks More Money to Cope with Syrian Crisis.”  VOA, July 16, 2013.

Euronews.  “UN: Syrian conflict is the worst humanitarian crisis in nearly 20 years.”  July 16, 2013.

Sherlock, Ruth and Colin Freeman.  “David Cameron accused of betraying Syrian rebels.”  The Telegraph, July 15, 2013.

Tutu, Demond.  “We are all shamed by Syria’s suffering.”  The Elders, March 25, 2013.

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