This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Villanova chapter.

Editor’s Note: College is a time during which we undergo 4 years of self-discovery and (hopefully) begin to understand our place as young adults in society. We at Her Campus Villanova believe it is important not just to be aware of news that pertains to our campus, but news that affects the world we’ll be stepping into once we graduate. Most college students aren’t as informed about certain global issues as they should be; many know there is a crisis occurring in Syria but the details are lost. That’s why Kaisha Lourens has broken down the matter in this article. We hope Her Campus Villanova can serve as a news outlet for everything from fashion trends to worldwide topics trending on Twitter.

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(Photo Credit: AP/ Mohammad Hannon)

The use of chemical weapons in Syria that killed more than 1,400 people on August 21, 2013 has sparked a controversial debate throughout the world. It is alleged that the Syrian government released chemical weapons on their own civilians. The Syrian government has denied these allegations and placed blame upon the rebel group al-Qaeda. The United States has no concrete evidence of who unleashed the chemical attack.

Laboratory results of blood and hair samples from the site in Damascus tested positive for sarin gas. Said Secretary of State John Kerry, “Bashar Assad now joins the list of Adolf Hitler and Saddam Hussein [who] have used these weapons in time of war”. The nature of this attack was focused upon killing civilian targets, making it possible to label this a terrorist attack.

This chemical attack on Syria has led the U.S. to declare war despite the fact that the U.S. has no known interests in Syria. President Obama has explicitly stated before that he did not want to interfere with the matters in Syria. However, Obama had also formerly warned Syria that if they were to launch a chemical attack, the U.S. would interfere. In his statement on Syria, Obama said that this is the worst chemical weapons attack of the 21st century. Obama has been quite anti-war throughout his term as president. After pulling troops out of Iraq, taking large numbers of troops out of Afghanistan, stating that America’s War in Afghanistan will be over by the end of 2014, and significantly reducing the military budget, why would the president want to wage another war? Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) has criticized the president directly for these reasons, “In his effort to avoid war, Obama has spread war. In his effort to reach out and make peace, we have gotten the finger… This war is going to spread outside of Syria. This weak response is going to make things worse, not better.”

Why should the United States take military action against Syria?

Military action may prevent another chemical weapon strike from taking place.
An attack on Syria would protect countries and their citizens along the Syrian border; Israel, Jordan, Turkey, Lebanon, and Iraq.
The chemical weapon attack in Syria presents imminent danger to our national security.
Obama has already declared the US would take military action against Syria.
Assad’s dictatorial regime needs to be held responsible for the chemical attack.
Assad needs to be removed from his dictatorial position.
Missile strikes on Syria will be quite limited and won’t require “boots on the ground”.
France supports Obama’s decision and plans to join the US military action.
More than 100,000 civilians are estimated to have died since the uprising against Assad and his Syrian regime, which began in March 2011.

Why shouldn’t the United States take military action in Syria?

The U.S. does not have an interest in the resolution of the conflict in Syria.
It is unknown whether a strike on Syria would actually prevent Syria from using chemical weapons in the future. A strike on Syria could actually motivate Syria to use a chemical weapon again.
Arabs view Obama as weak due to postponing an attack on Syria.
Although Obama ensures Americans that it will be a limited attack, it could escalate which would force the U.S. to send troops into Syria.
Innocent civilian targets are, once again, susceptible to the attack in Syria.
The military action in Syria is focused on removing Assad from his dictatorial position, but there is no desirable force or leader who might replace Assad.
Israel will be attacked as a direct result of a U.S. strike on Syria. Israel is our ally; we should ‘Stand with Israel’ in order to protect our ally.
The UN Security Council does not support a U.S. military strike on Syria.
Vladmir Putin and Russia urge Obama and the U.S. to not attack Syria.
The U.S. cannot predict how Russia, Iran, or China may react to the attack on Syria.
“Military action would have a negative impact on the global economy, especially on the oil price – it will cause a hike in the oil price,” Chinese Vice Finance Minister Zhu Guangyao told a briefing.
Pope Francis urged to “lay aside the futile pursuit of a military solution”. The Pope declared, “War brings on war! Violence brings on violence.” He has also invited the 1.2 billion Roman Catholics and people of other faiths to join him in a day of prayer and fasting on Saturday to end the civil war.
Boehner and Pelosi are among ~5% of the House who are publically supporting a military strike (so far).
More than 2 million Syrians are now registered as refugees; Lebanon has received 716,000 Syrian refugees so far. Lebanon’s crime rate is rapidly rising due to thefts and shootings taking place in the country. There is a direct correlation with the spike of crime rate in Lebanon and the Syrian refugees fleeing to Lebanon.

The president duly noted that Americans are “war-weary” at the moment. However, Obama said he wants the American people to know “This is not Iraq, and this is not Afghanistan.” He said action in Syria will be limited and proportional. There are negative impacts on everyone around the world if the U.S. issues a military strike. We must carefully weigh the consequences of an intervention on Syria before dealing with the direct ramifications as a result of a U.S. attack.

Sources:

“10 Reasons Why U.S. Intervention in Syria is an Awful Idea | Prettay Prettay Good.“

Abu-Nasr, Donna. “Syria Has Right to Respond to U.S. Threat, Minister Says – Bloomberg.”

Allen, Jonathan . “AIPAC calls for Congress to authorize Syria action – Jonathan Allen – POLITICO.com.“

“BBC News – Syria crisis: UN says more than 2m have fled.”

Bender, Michael C., Roxana Tiron, and Greg Giroux. “Numbers in Congress Show Obama Far From Approval on Syria – Bloomberg.”

Carafano, James. “Top 5 Reasons Not to Use Missile Strikes in Syria.“

D’EMILIO, FRANCES. “Pope Francis Calls For Peace In Syria, Announces Worldwide Day Of Fasting On September 7, 2013.”

Dann, Carrie, and NBC News. “Kerry: Samples from Syria tested positive for sarin – NBC Politics.”

Harel, Amos. “Obama seeking Western legitimacy, but Arabs perceive him as weak – Diplomacy & Defense Israel News Broadcast | Haaretz.“

“Iranian lawmaker says Israel would be ‘first victim’ of Syria strike | Fox News.”

Jaffe, Alexandra. “Graham: Response in Syria ‘going to make things worse’ – The Hill’s DEFCON Hill.“