By: Elizabeth McCarthy

THE WAR IN SYRIA

Quick OverviewSyrian Flag

•A little bit bigger than North Dakota•Bordered by Lebanon, Israel, Turkey, Iraq, and Jordan•Government: republic under a military regime•President: Bashar al-Assad

Unrest began in March, 2011 when the Tunisian revolution reached Syria

Citizens in a small town protested the treatment of students, who put up anti-government graffiti

Government responded with heavy force President Bashar al-Assad: force or reform?

April 2011: after hints of reform, Assad had major crackdowns

Sent tanks into restive cities to open fire on protestors Soldiers began to turn on the government

U.N. referred to this as “the verge of civil war” Syrian National Council formed Conflict comes down to ethnic divisions:

Assad's and nation’s elite= AlawiteSunni Muslims= Insurgents

History of the War

Syria is a strategic nexus Assad has been condemned around the world

Arab League has called him to step downExpelled from the leaguePressed China and Russia to break their

ties with his regimeUnited Nations

Truce monitorsCease fire

Lebanon is allowing Sunni’s to flee to refugee camps

Response from other countries

“Government brutality shames

the world …into paying

attention”-TIME Magazine

Who is reporting?

Print or Online?About the sameMany options online

TelevisionMore interestingAble to see

RadioDescriptiveInteresting

What did I benefit from?

Associated Press. (App on my Iphone) “UN monitors brings lull to Syria hotspot; Annan hopes bigger observer team can salvage truce.” April 22, 2012. Web. (March 3, 2012).

Associated Press. “Syria Accepts U.N. plan.” The Richmond Times Dispatch. March 28, 2012. A4. Print.

“Syria.” infoplease. Pearson Education, 2000-2012. Web. (May 21, 2012).

“Syria.” The New York Times. The New York Times Company, May 16, 2012. Web. (May 16, 2012).

Walt, Vivienne. “Escape from Syria.” Time Magazine. March 2012. Print.

Syria Map Pinpoint: Screen Shot of my Iphone search in Google Maps

Comparison Map: A screen shot from my Iphone from a Google Maps search

http://www.wbur.org/files/2011/04/0418_syria-protests-630x413.jpg

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0108016.html

http://wpcontent.answcdn.com/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/92/Map_of_USA_with_state_names_2.svg/650px-Map_of_USA_with_state_names_2.svg.png

Works Cited