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The Syrian Crisis: What’s Really Happening?

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

In case you’ve seen the morbid images circulating around media or you’ve heard this term and find yourself clueless to what’s going on here it is. In the Syrian city of Daraa, a group of teens were arrested and tortured because of revolutionary vandalism  on the side of a school. Security then opened fire on those who protested, leading to more to stand their place.

Widespread  anti-government demonstrations started in March of 2011 in order to fix the injustices the citizens were facing. These injustices  include harsh military aggression, ethnic and female discrimination, lack of protection for freedom of speech and just a depletion of human rights in general. As a result these protests ended in violent backlash.The rate of violence ascended rather quickly. There is talk of both sides committing malicious crimes such as murder, kidnapping, torture, rape and civilian suffering. Currently there is a civil war going on that is leaving Syria in chaotic disaster and despair. This is the Syrian Crisis. During this war over 90,00 people had been killed and by 2015 skyrocketed to 250,000 people being slaughtered. Most of these casualties have been occurring lately due to bombings around the area. These bombings have been from government aircraft meant to be for rebel areas. The UN security Council has put the blame on The Islamic State having something to do with these fatalities also. With Russia being involved, it’s also possible they, too have been assisting in the bombings in order to rid the country of the rebels.

So, where does the United States come into play in all of this? The U.S agrees that the this unjust government should be abolished. As a result since 2014 the U.S has been conducting airstrikes on the Islamic State. So forth there has been an all out warfare going on in Syria.  The effect is  leaving people shelterless. Children being buried alive  in debris from destroyed buildings and sparse amounts of resources. 70 % of the population is without water.  1 in 3 are not able to provide food for themselves, 4 out of 5 live in poverty and 2 million children are out of school.