Jun. 12th, 2017
Welcome to our weekly summary of Syria Deeply’s top coverage of the crisis in Syria. The Battle For Raqqa Begins: After much anticipation, the battle for Raqqa, the former de facto capital of the so-called Islamic State group, began on Tuesday morning.
The U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) officially launched a highly anticipated offensive, advancing toward Raqqa from three sides, Reuters reported. On Saturday, the SDF began a pincer operation against opposite flanks of Raqqa, advancing into the northwestern al-Romania district after seizing the far eastern al-Mishlab district and half of the western al-Sabahia district.
The anti-ISIS activist group Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently and so-called Islamic State (ISIS) media outlet Aamaq distributed photos purporting to show U.S.-led coalition forces using white phosphorus on densely populated civilian areas of Raqqa. A U.S. official confirmed to the New York Times that U.S. forces fighting ISIS in Iraq and Syria have access to the substance but said “ it was not being used against personnel.”
Syrian government airstrikes reportedly targeted ISIS positions and armored vehicles in the western Raqqa countryside, along a highway linking the ISIS stronghold to Aleppo on Thursday. Earlier in the week, pro-government forces reached the border of Raqqa province and secured their position on the western bank of the Euphrates.
Fierce Fighting In Daraa: Fighting has intensified in the southern city of Daraa, with some of the most intense aerial bombardments over the weekend.
On Monday, Reuters reported that pro-government reinforcements have been deployed to the city, including Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah and Shiite Iraqi militias. Major Issam al Rayes, a spokesman of the so-called Southern Front grouping of the Free Syrian Army (FSA), told Reuters that “the regime has brought large columns of troops from the elite 4th Armoured Division,” a key Syrian army unit.
“Everything indicates the regime is preparing for a large-scale military campaign in Daraa in which they plan to encircle the city and reach the Jordanian border,” Rayes said.
The activist-run Nabaa Media outlet in Daraa accused the government of using “napalm-like” weapons on the city, according to the Associated Press.
Since fighting in Daraa escalated in February, some 20,000 residents have fled the opposition-controlled areas of the city, Nabaa contributor Mohammad Abazeid told AP.
Iran-U.S. Tensions: Iran-backed Iraqi forces reached Iraq’s border with Syria over the weekend, encircling U.S.-backed forces roughly 31 miles (50km) northeast of the Tanf base, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Russia confirmed the claim, which, if true, would prevent U.S.-backed forces fighting ISIS from advancing along the Euphrates River in eastern Syria to the ISIS-held areas of Bou Kamal and Deir Ezzor, the Associated Press reported.
On Thursday, an American F-15 fighter jet shot down a drone that U.S. officials claim was connected to Iran or Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah and was used to target U.S.-backed fighters near the Tanf base. U.S. Army Col. Ryan Dillon, a spokesman for the coalition fighting ISIS, said though the drone’s weapon did not detonate, the coalition considered it a direct threat and not a “warning shot.”
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CIVIL SOCIETY
The Life and Death of One of Syria’s Most Beloved Minesweepers
Abu al Fadl devoted the final months of his life to clearing al-Bab of improvised explosives left behind by ISIS in everything from washing machines to cooking pots. The 60-year-old destroyed roughly 3,500 mines before one took his life.
DIPLOMACY & FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Analysis: Euphrates Fight May Beat ISIS Militarily, But Not Ideologically
As U.S. and Iran escalate their battle against ISIS in eastern Syria and western Iraq, no one is thinking about the fate of local communities after the militant group’s potential military defeat, writes journalist Lorenzo Trombetta.
RELIGIOUS & ETHNIC GROUPS
Analysis: U.S.-Brokered Deal Aims to Ease Tension Between FSA and Kurds
The move to arm the Kurds is a sign that the U.S. is beginning to deal with the complications of its anti-ISIS policy in Syria, writes Chatham House fellow Haid Haid. However, some Syrian analysts think it’s too little too late.
EDITOR’S PICKS
Community Insight
DIPLOMACY & FOREIGN AFFAIRS
How Russia Can Secure the De-Escalation Zones in Syria
Neil Hauer, Senior Intelligence Analyst, SecDev Group in Ottawa
Neil Hauer, senior intelligence analyst at the SecDev Group, examines Russia’s primary option to secure the “de-escalation zones” and ensure compliance with the cease-fire: the Chechen units of the Kremlin’s military police.
DISPLACEMENT
Safe Zones Must Offer Protection, Not Solely Prevent Search for Asylum
Geoff Gilbert, Professor of Law, School of Law and Human Rights Centre at the University of Essex
In today’s conflicts, safe zones cannot realistically provide the security guaranteed to civilians under international law and should not be proposed as a substitute for asylum in another country, according to the Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law.
ARTS & CULTURE
Journalists Challenge Syrian Media to Improve Gender Coverage in War
Jihii Jolly, Community Editor of Women & Girls at News Deeply
The Syrian Female Journalists’ Network was founded to ensure better coverage of gender issues and better representation of women in newsrooms in the midst of the country’s protracted conflict. Milia Eidmouni tells News Deeply how they do it.
FIRST LOOK
Upcoming coverage
We are always looking for new writers, experts and journalists who are covering the crisis in Syria and are interested in writing about a variety of topics. Please send us your ideas, story pitches and any other thoughts about our coverage via email, Twitter or Facebook.
VDC Media Team: May 2017 Statistical Report on Victims
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African Leaders Encourage South Sudan to Revive Peace
By: Sarah Lafen
Impunity Watch News Reporter, Africa Desk
JUBA, South Sudan — The Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) concluded its summit meeting this past Monday with a focus on the worsening war situation in South Sudan. The bloc at the summit called upon all parties involved to take necessary steps to follow a concrete plan to revitalize the Agreement on the Resolution of Conflict on South Sudan, which was implemented in 2015.
The IGAD also called for a forum including all parties, even estranged groups, to discuss measures to restore a permanent ceasefire. The forum would also develop a more realistic timeline towards South Sudan’s August 2018 elections, and would delay the elections if necessary to a more feasible date. South Sudan First Vice President Taban Deng Gai believes the elections should go forth as planned, however summit delegates officially decided that it would be “too premature” to hold an election considering the country’s high level of violence.
The Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Committee (JMEC) in South Sudan has also decried its country’s continuing violence. JMEC chairperson Festus Mogae commented that “[t]he rapidly deteriorating political, security, humanitarian and economic situation in the country has caused unprecedented displacement, famine, and growing civilian flight. The pace of the implementation of the Peace Agreement has been too slow…”
According to the UN OCHA Humanitarian Bulletin Report distributed on May 28, 3.7 million South Sudanese are homeless. Some have relocated to civilian sites, and others have been moved to refugee settlements in neighboring countries Kenya and Uganda. Also according to the report, 5.5 million people are “food insecure,” and there are many reports of human rights violations including murders, sexual violence, arbitrary arrests, and detentions.
South Sudan President Salva Kiir did not attend the summit due to “pressing issues in the country,” however First Vice President Gai attended in his place.
Sudan’s ambassador to Ethiopia, Jamal Al Sheikh, told reporters that the summit commenced the opening of “Sudanese humanitarian corridors to forward to relief to the affected civilians in South Sudan.” Al Sheikh confirmed that IGAD would continue its efforts to cooperate with willing partners.
For more information, please see:
Africa News — IGAD Redirects South Sudanese Warring Parties Back to Peace Agreement — 13 June 2017
Eyewitness News — Africa Leaders Push South Sudan to Revive Peace, Delay Vote — 13 June 2017
The Star — End Hostilities, Abuse of Human Rights in South Sudan, JMEC tells IGAD — 13 June 2017
Theresa May suggests altering human rights laws to fight terrorism
By: Sara Adams
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe
LONDON, United Kingdom – On June 5, a van ran onto the sidewalk of London Bridge and swerved back to hit a crowd of pedestrians. Amid the chaos, the attackers exited their van and proceeded to continue their attack on bystanders with knives and fake bomb belts. At least seven people were killed.
The United Kingdom is still reeling from the Manchester bombing on May 22. The bridge attack was quickly found to be terrorism related to the Islamic State.
In response, Prime Minister Theresa May suggested that the UK will change their human rights laws in order to prevent more terror attacks in the country.
These changes, she said, may include longer prison terms for convicted terrorists and simplified deportation methods for “foreign terror suspects.” It has also been speculated that the United Kingdom may seek to opt-out of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
The ECHR began in 1953 after the European Convention in Rome in 1950. Article 15 of the treaty would allow the UK to disregard certain aspects of the Convention under certain circumstances. One of the strict circumstances that would permit the UK to forgo their obligations would be a public emergency that “threatens the life of the nation.”
Prime Minister May argues that the United Kingdom should do what it takes to fight the terrorism problem in Britain. She told the British magazine The Sun on Wednesday, “if human rights laws get in the way of doing these things, we will change those laws to make sure we can do them.”
Critics, among them the Labor Party and the Liberal Democratic party, say that P.M. May’s statements are “cynical”. Former Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg told the BBC that P.M. May’s “[attack] of the principles of human rights legislation is not the right way to keep us safe”.
Given the results of the general election on June 7, it is uncertain whether Prime Minister May will remain in power much longer. Her Conservative party lost the majority in Parliament by a handful of votes. With this, it is unclear whether the Prime Minister’s plans to rollback human rights laws will come to fruition.
For more information, please see:
NBC News – London Bridge Attack: 18 Minutes of Chaos in Borough Market, on Streets – 5 June 2017
ABC News – Who’s who, what’s at stake in Britain’s unexpected election – 7 June 2017
BBC News – Theresa May: Human rights laws could change for terror fight – 7 June 2017
CNN – Theresa May: UK will change human rights laws if needed for terror fight – 7 June 2017
NBC News – U.K. Election: British PM Theresa Under Pressure After Shock Vote – 11 June 2017
Jurist: A Darkened Age—The Rule of Law in Protecting Morality and Humanity
JURIST Guest Columnist, David M. Crane, of Syracuse University School of Law discusses the importance of the rule of law in restoring the ideals of humanity and morality on a global scale…
There is a growling of a discontent, an unrest, just below the surface, festering ready to erupt into a boil of frustration. The salve of the rule of law diluted or unavailable. The world today shifts to the right or spins helpless, struggling to find an anchor, a safe harbor in which to balance itself.
There is no light towards which we can step towards, hopeful that mankind is moving in a direction that is right and proper. Our kaleidoscopic future looms, where tried and true customs and norms shrink from this new thinking of looking inward and away from a global village that was beginning to change the world stage.
In another context we have been here before. For 50 years we saw a stasis that saw the rise of the dictator. The Cold War was a desperate time trying to maintain a balance that would avoid Armageddon. Death and destruction by heads of state against their own citizens was rampant, with little checks against internal struggles. Mankind simply looked the other way as long as loyalty towards one side or the other was maintained. Tens of millions perished, disappearing into the sands of time forgotten as if they never existed.
As the Cold War ended there was a sense of optimism that we had changed for the better, the rule of law began to take hold, the UN taking its intended position of guiding the international community [PDF] towards a real peace and security never attained before. Tyranny shrank before this blinding light and dictators faced accountability. The new millennium held promise, more so than any other millennial event.
It all came crashing down with the towers on September 11, 2001. A fundamental shift took place, at the time seemingly correct, wrapped in a ragged cloth of righteous fury. But the pain of that day stripped away our innocence, our hope, our desire to build a global village where all mankind would benefit. America turned into itself, seemingly trying to lead, to fight against a new and elusive adversary, yet chasing its tail against itself. American civil liberties were challenged. The world watched and stepped away, subtly looking for other leadership and other ways to survive in a world of struggle with a weakened America, the loss of a land that was a bright and shining light that dimmed, barely visible in the storm of extremism that blew across the world.
To survive nation-states began to look for their own solutions seeking new directions. Major international institutions such as the UN, the North American Treaty Organization (NATO), the European Union (EU) and the International Criminal Court (ICC) shrank in influence against the onslaught of that extremism. There seemed to be no solutions that were viable. The world wobbling, citizens looked to new political leaders who promised to restore greatness, an elusive idea that cannot be attained alone in this new century. The rise of the nationalistic right a desperate attempt to grasp hold of the fog of this new kaleidoscopic world.
The world is heading into a new darkened age, perhaps to an inevitable conflict of unimaginable dimension. There is little to counter this slide into the dark. Certainly America is no longer that counterweight. An insecure Europe, no longer a meaningful geopolitical entity, cannot step up. The rule of law is lost in the muddle of hate and the there is a loss of any moral compass, particularly in America. “Nothing matters” replaces “from many one” as America’s national motto. In the short and medium term there appears to be no solution. It is hoped that the world will not dissolve while this new global society seeks a new path.
The rule of law must be that path upon which mankind must tread in the long term or we will surely slide down the path into a new darkened age. One has to wonder rhetorically whether Osama Bin Laden actually achieved what he set out to do—see a weakened America fade while western civilization fed upon itself in the moral vacuum left by that America, seeing extremism wrapped in the cloak of Islam causing doubt and fear about the viability of international norms. It remains to be seen. As the new American president stumbles about the world, the future does not augur well.
David M. Crane is a professor at Syracuse University College of Law. He is the founding Chief Prosecutor of the International War Crimes Tribunal in West Africa called the Special Court for Sierra Leone. He is also the founder of the Syrian Accountability Project.
Suggested citation: David M. Crane, A Darkened Age—The Rule of Law in Protecting Morality and Humanity, JURIST – Academic Commentary, June 6, 2017, http://jurist.org/forum/2017/06/David-Crane-a-darkened-age.php
This article was prepared for publication by <aherf=” jurist_search.php?q=”Krista” grobelny”=””>Krista Grobelny, Assistant Editor for JURIST Commentary. Please direct any questions ot comments to her at <ahref=”mailto:commentary@jurist.org”>commentary@jurist.org