In Syria, the fighting that began in 2011 has left more than 70,000 people dead thus far. Nobody knows how many people have been tortured, injured or crippled. Millions of people have abandoned their homes, never to return. The Assad regime has gone so far as to launch SCUD missiles at its own cities. Savagery is continuing unabated.
So, are the “superpowers” unable to stop Assad’s barbarity in Syria? It could be stopped, of course, but it isn’t.
There are two reasons:
The first reason stems from the general bigotry that enfolds the world and gives rise to Islamophobia. Russia, which is in full control of Assad, is worried about radical terror. This is also the reason for the US, NATO and Europe’s fears. The question is, what will happen if Assad goes? They are terrified that radical groups will come to power and at the prospect of said radicals controlling all of Syria’s weaponry. Russia thinks that if a radical administration comes to power it will lose its influence in Syria and its base in the east Mediterranean, while US thinks it will lose its influence in the Middle East.
This is the main fear that radicalism has brought to the world. Radicalism is not only the source of barbarity and hatred, but also of lack of quality, lack of taste, a moving away from art and science and of ignorance. Even if extremist groups are not in the majority, they are still on the list of alternatives to Assad. And this naturally alarms the states in question. A superstitious and hate-filled faith diametrically opposed to Islam again targets Muslims in the name of Islam.
The wicked plans that represent the second reason why Assad is not being stopped. Certain groups — who are planning a bloody Armageddon in the Middle East, taking recourse to their evangelical beliefs for that purpose — have long been waiting for the Middle East to enter a state of turmoil and division. The first stage of the plan became successful with the weakening of Iraq and its division into Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds. The plan to divide and weaken Turkey has been systematically employed for the last 30 years with the installation of a terrorist organization in the east. This plan is contributing to much of the present turmoil in Syria. The Sunnis in Iraq are supporting the opposition; the Kurds the PYD and many Shiites are supporting Assad. The same thing goes for Lebanon. The same applies to Turkey, which is facing the risk of the PYD supporting the PKK. And to Jordan, which is also always affected by upheavals in the region. Iran, which also has a Sunni population as well as Kurdish, will also probably come in for its own share of misery.
What they are trying to do in Syria is to depict the conflict as purely sectarian and to ensure as much sectarian focus as possible in the entire Middle East. In this way, countries will be drawn into their own internal conflicts and thus weakened and divided.
Those groups that are impatiently waiting for this war will then have found an excuse to intervene in the Middle East. There will be not one powerful country remaining in the region as a result of this conflict and division, which will make it easier for them to achieve their ends and put this unpleasant plan into action. What must be done to eliminate the first reason why Assad is being kept in power? States in the region, such as Turkey, Egypt and Jordan need to forge an alliance. An administration that is not under the influence of radicals, that has adopted a democratic conception of Islam and that will act in alliance with the states in question needs to be installed. Russia must be given guarantees and Russia must be shown that there is no possibility of its losing its base at Tartus. Russia withdrawing its backing for Assad and a sound democratic regime being brought in under the supervision of friendly states, at least until stability is secured in the country, will resolve these problems.
What must be done about the second reason keeping Assad in power? The tactic being used by certain forces to prepare a climate for war is to divide states and nations. In the face of this, the countries of the region must be united with all their might and show that this union has sound foundations. For this we need to cling to our most important value, the unifying nature of our faith. As required in the verse “Hold fast to the rope of Allah all together, and do not separate” (Surah Al-Imran, 103), we must first be united among ourselves and then become a community of trust, justice and affection including all countries.
This union needs to be based on love and love alone, not on self-interest, economic relations and plans of political collaboration. The union must attach importance to democracy, the basis of Islam, freedom of ideas, art, beauty and science. It must also be a union that embraces every faith, every sect, every nation and every ethnic group. We must not forget that only with such a union can we free our Muslim brothers from oppression. And only can then we stop these sinister plans targeting Muslims.
— The writer is a peace activist and a commentator on Turkish TV.
