The recent deadly terrorist attacks in Paris have given rise to much speculation about whether the international community will finally put its act together and form a joint front to stem terrorism from its roots. Interestingly enough, the “war on Daesh” has become the shorthand for new prospects for a reconfiguration of the forces fighting terror in Syria. Many observers — some even talk about a third world war against Daesh — are quick to conclude that the latest terrorist attacks would shape the positions of key actors quite differently from the patterns of the near past.
The United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted a French-drafted resolution calling on all able states to join the fight against Daesh in both Syria and Iraq. The militant group has taken terrorism to an alarming level thus putting the genie out of the bottle. Daesh “in Iraq and the Levant constitutes a global and unprecedented threat to international peace and security,” said the resolution. The resolution also calls on all nations to double their efforts to stem the flow of foreign fighters into Syria and Mesopotamia to join Daesh. Implicit in the resolution is the need of all able countries to devote more resources that are commensurate with the perils of this militant group on regional and world peace.
It remains to be seen whether the Paris attacks will serve as a game changer in the war over Syria. At least France seems to be serious about taking the fight against Daesh to a different level. And yet, an effective way of fighting Daesh entails dealing with the root causes of the crisis in Syria. This is exactly what the UNSC resolution fails to address.
Put differently, Assad should be classified as a terrorist and should be dealt with accordingly. There is interdependence between Daesh and Assad. A Syria minus Assad will for sure make Daesh less appealing and therefore much weaker.
The Syrian ambassador to the UN exploited the situation and said, “Welcome to everybody who finally woke up and joined the club of combating terrorists.” His statement reflects an insult to the intelligence of the international community as Assad is widely seen as the magnet of terrorists.
As long as Assad is at the helm of an illegitimate regime, the international community will face serious difficulties in fighting Daesh. While the international support for wiping out Daesh is evident, the support has to pass the test of implementation. Disagreement may soon surface as Russia is still at odds with the West and the Arabs over the future of Assad. Russia should let go the idea of Assad as part of the solution should it looks for a dignified way out from Syria. To be sure, a post-Assad Syria cannot be designed as one player sees fit. No force can impose Assad on millions of disgruntled and displaced Syrians.
Among the supporters of the Syrian people, Saudi Arabia stands out in creating the conditions for a measured and reasonable transition in Syria. Riyadh will host an important meeting for the Syrian opposition groups to get united. At this point, one could make the case that should the Syrian opposition seek to be relevant to the present and future of Syria, it needs to cast aside all differences and get their act together. Fortunately, Saudi Arabia is just helping them do that. While the ultimate objective is to bring Assad down, managing a post-Assad Syria will be a great challenge for whoever wins the battle. For this reason, a lot of thinking should be devoted to how to rebuild an inclusive and democratic Syria. At least, we should learn from the lessons of Iraq.
