Syria
Featured Publications & Tools
The Institute invited leading experts from the U.S. and across the Middle East to identify key vectors of influence Syria’s neighbors are bringing to bear on the conflict; to forecast how the on-going conflict in Syria will affect the delicate and volatile regional balance of power; and to examine how the Syrian opposition and the Syria regime are factoring in regional and cross-border dynamics.
Experts from the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP) are closely following developments throughout the Middle East and North Africa. In a series of reports and interviews, they cover a wide range of issues.
USIP Mideast expert Steven Heydemann examines the reasons behind the regime's escalation of violence, the international community's response, and additional steps that the U.S. might take to pressure the Assad government.
USIP’s Scott Lasensky and Lawrence Woocher discuss the growing concerns over crimes against humanity being committed in Syria.
Latest from USIP on Syria
- February 6, 2012 | Publication
After several days of intensive negotiation, Russia and China vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution on Saturday, February 4 that would have required Syria to implement the terms of an Arab League transition framework. USIP's Steve Heydmann assesses the current situation.
- January 19, 2012 | Publication
USIP's Steven Heydemann looks at Syria and the impact the Arab League can have on the Assad regime.
- January 19, 2012 | Publication
USIP's Steven Heydemann moderates a discussion about the Arab Awakening with the Institute's Stephen Hadley and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace's Marwan Muasher.
- January 18, 2012 | Event
In May, President Obama defined the Arab Spring as a “historic opportunity” to redefine and strengthen America’s relationships in the Middle East, demonstrating that “America values the dignity of the street vendor . . . more than the raw power of the dictator.” One year after the “Jasmine Revolution” in Tunisia, has the promise of the Arab Awakening been realized? Please join former national security adviser Stephen Hadley and former Jordanian foreign minister Marwan Muasher on Wednesday, January 18, as they lead an analysis and discussion of what the Arab Awakening means for 2012.
Overview
August 18, 2011 - Since the beginning of Ramadan in early August 2011, the Syrian regime has escalated efforts to repress the mass protests that have swept across the country since March. Security forces and loyalist units of the Syrian military launched brutal crackdowns on several of Syria’s major cities—and major centers of protest—including Hama, Homs, and Deir al-Zor. As a result of these actions, the death toll from five months of Syria’s uprising now exceeds 2,000. More than 13,000 Syrians have been arrested for participating in protests calling for an end to the Assad regime. Despite the regime’s massive use of force, however, mass protests continued across the country, with indications that even Damascus and Aleppo—cities that had previously not experienced significant protest activity—were beginning to stir.
On August 18, 2011, President Barack Obama called on President Assad to step aside, “for the sake of the Syrian people.” The U.S. president also announced new “sanctions to deepen the financial isolation of the Assad regime and further disrupt its ability to finance a campaign of violence against the Syrian people.”
Read more about the situation in Syria >>
- USIP Experts Available for Comment on Syria
- Eye on the Middle East and North Africa: Experts from the U.S. Institute of Peace are closely following developments throughout the Middle East and North Africa. In a series of reports and interviews, they cover a wide range of issues.
Publications & Tools
The following are highlights of USIP's publications and tools on Syria.
- Steven Heydemann on International Diplomatic Pressures on Syria
On the Issues with Steven Heydemann | August 12, 2011 - Mass Atrocities in Syria: the International Response
On the Issues with Scott Lasensky and Lawrence Woocher | July 25, 2011 - Syria's Opposition Movement
On the Issues with Steven Heydemann | April 5, 2011 - Upheaval in Syria
On the Issues with Scott Lasensky | March 28, 2011 - Read about the relationship between Iran and Syria on USIP's Iran Primer.
- Mapping Peace between Syria and Israel
Special Report by Frederic Hof | March 2009 - The Kurds in Syria: Fueling Separatist Movements in the Region?
Special Report by Radwan Ziadeh | April 2009
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