This paper will explore the causes of and the main players in this formidable human tragedy, the tragedy of Sunni Arabs and their resistance to the dominance of the Alawite heretics and Iranian Shias. The Syrian war is a crime against Sunni Arabs because the war’ main goal is an ethnic cleansing to remove the Sunni Arabs from Syria. This paper argues that the key reason for the war is ethnic cleansing based on the Sunni Arabs’ religion and ethnicity and the resistance of Semitic Sunni to the invasion of the Alawite-Iranian-Hezbollah-Russian coalition in Syria. Some geopolitical, geo-military, and geo-economic reasons for the invasion will also be presented. During the course of this long, bloody war, nearly all the participants have changed their aspirations, aims, and objectives. Close to the end of the war, it is evident that the aspirations and aims that dominate the end phases contrast sharply with those held at the beginning of the war.
The goal of the Assad regime during the civil war has been to suppress the Sunni Arab majority, regarded as Semitic adversaries of the Shia Alawites, the ruling minority. The aim has been to conduct an ethnic cleansing of Syria from Sunni Arabs to increase the percentage of Alawites in the total population and to influence the balance between Arabs versus Alawites and Sunnis versus Shias.
The different participants in this war, the Alawites and Arabs, have had different aims, which have altered during the course of the war. To gain an understanding of the events of the war, we need to examine the history of the region and the different participants.
The terms “anti-Semitic” and “anti-Semitism” have almost exclusively been applied to describe the hostilities toward and discrimination against the Jews [
Arab leaders collaborated with the Nazis as f.e. Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein (جمال عبد الناصر حسين), who subsequently became the president of Egypt from 1956 to 1970. During World War II, Nasser was arrested by the British for collaboration with the Nazis [
A political and religious Arab leader known to be pro-Nazi and anti-Jewish was Amin al-Husayni, a member of the al-Husayni clan of Jerusalem. He was the Grand Mufti and leader of the Arab Higher Committee. From 1938 to 1945, including during World War II, al-Husayni closely allied himself with the Nazi regime [
After World War II, many former Nazi war criminals contributed considerably to the development of armed forces and military intelligence as advisors in Syria [
Ethnic cleansing is defined as “The forced removal of ethnic, religious, cultural or racial groups from a territory or country by another ethnic group with help or without help of foreign forces”. Often, there is international silence or protests occur only a significant time after the actual event.
There are many examples from the near past, including the genocide of the Jews in Europe by the Nazis. When the Red Army freed Kiev (the capital of Ukraine), it discovered mass graves in the nearby ravine of Babyn Yar (Ukrainian: Бабин Яр). Here, the German Nazis and Ukrainian nationalists had massacred 33,771 Jews in just a few days, from 29 to 30 September 1941. Later, many thousands of communists and prisoners of war were massacred in Babyn Yar. The Ukrainian Auxiliary Police had carried out many extermination orders [
The massacre of Poles in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia, known as the Volhynia Massacre, is still not well known to the international community. When the massacre took place, it was concealed by Nazis, and then later by the USSR and communists in Poland. Even today, it has been poorly studied and poorly documented https://polska.pl/history/history-poland/truth-about-volhynian-massacre/, https://ipfs.io/ipfs/QmXoypizjW3WknFiJnKLwHCnL72vedxjQkDDP1mXWo6uco/wiki/Massacres_of_Poles_in_Volhynia_and_Eastern_Galicia.html.
During World War II, the euphemism čišćenje terena (“cleansing the terrain”) was used by Ustaše in Croatia in relation to actions against Jews and Serbs [
The war in Yemen has many similarities with the war in Syria. Many Hutu (who participated in genocide) relocated in Yemen after they were expelled from Rwanda [
Another example of ethnic cleansing is the Katyn massacre that occurred in 1940. The People’s Commissariat for Internal Affairs (abbreviated as the NKVD), a government department of the Soviet Union, performed a mass execution of Polish war prisoners near Smolensk in the western part of the former USSR, killing mainly officers and intellectuals of the Polish and Belarusian nationality. In 1943, a mass execution of Belarusian civilians by the Nazis occurred in the same place.
It is necessary to know the history and the ethnic and religious composition of Syria to answer the question of why the war in Syria was and is a case of ethnic cleansing.
Syria is situated in Asia Minor, often called the Middle East, and it is located in what is known as the Fertile Crescent [
The Mandatory Syrian Republic existed from 1930 to 1946 as a component of the French Mandate of Syria and Lebanon. As early as 1936, a treaty was drafted to grant independence to Syria, but the French parliament refused to accept it. From 1940 to 1941, the Syrian Republic was under the rule of the Nazi Vichy government, until the Allies invaded the territory in 1941. In 1944, Syria proclaimed an independent state, but only in October 1945 was the Syrian Republic recognized by the United Nations as an independent state de jure. On 17 April 1946, French troops were withdrawn from Syria and the Syrian Republic became a de facto sovereign state. Syria and the Republic of Egypt formed the United Arab Republic in 1958 under the leadership of Gamal Abdel Nasser. It was their response to Israel, France, and Britain launching a war against Egypt in 1956, to gain the Suez Canal back from Egypt [
Hafez al-Assad (6 October 1930-10 June 2000), the dictator of Syria, was originally a Syrian military officer. In 1955, he was commissioned as a lieutenant in the Syrian Air Force and received additional training in Egypt. In 1957, Assad was sent to the USSR to be trained in flying MiG-17s, and, in Moscow, he was recruited by the KGB as an influence agent [
Today, Alawites live in Syria, Turkey, Lebanon, Germany, Australia, and Israel, on the Golan Heights. The greatest number of Alawites live in Syria. According to Mehrdad Izady, in 2018, Alawites represented 17.2% of the Syrian population, an increase from 11.8% in 2010 [
Another side of the story concerns an earlier episode in history. In 1097, when the crusaders entered Syria, (according to Bar Hebraeus), “[the] crusaders concluded Alawites were not a truly Islamic sect [
“Alawis are self-described as a community of ‘true believers’. Alawites celebrate Mass, including consecration of bread and wine” [
Alawites also believe that “they were originally stars or divine lights that were cast out of heaven through disobedience and must undergo repeated reincarnation (or metempsychosis) before returning to heaven [
Despite the perspectives given above, the Sunni Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Haj Amin al-Husseini, recognized the Alawites to be Muslims [
In 1971, Hafez al-Assad declared himself to be president of Syria. However, according to the Syrian constitution, the presidency was reserved for and permitted only to Sunni Muslims. This fact sparked resistance by the Sunni. In 1973, a new constitution was adopted for the benefit of Alawi Hafez al-Assad, as it specified that the president must only be Muslim, by this, it was not required to be Sunni by origin. It was unusable for majority Sunni to have Alawi as a president. “Athari Sunni (modern day Salafis) scholars such as Ibn Kathir (a disciple of Ibn Taymiyya) have categorized Alawites as pagans in their writings” [
Having an Alawi rather than a “real” Muslim president was contrary to the wishes of the majority of Syrians and it resulted in protests and demonstrations [
Hafez al-Assad and Bashir al-Assad are the Alawi dynasty. They have been supported by their clan and by other Alawites. However, this has not been enough to subjugate the main population, 80% of which were Sunni Arabs. Therefore, the Alawites required allies, which they found in the Armenians, Greeks, Maronites, and other Christians. They also found allies in different Shi’i sects, among the Iranians, and even among the idolaters, pagans, and infidels, such as the Russians.
Between March and July of 2011, public protests erupted in Syria [
In the beginning, the pro-Assad forces were defeated on all fronts, including Damascus, and parts of Damascus were in the hands of opposition forces. However, Russia has been actively involved in the war on the side of Assad and confusion and disorder have prevailed within the USA (under Obama leadership) and NATO, resulting in an absence of action that could support the opposition by counterbalancing the Russian and Iranian support of Assad. Far from being a rapid strike, the revolt of the Sunni Arabs has transformed into a long civil war.
In Syria, as we have explained, there is a clash between the Alawites of Assad and the Sunni Arabs. The revolt of the Sunni Arabs was based purely on their aspiration for liberation from enslavement by the Alawites. Bashir al-Assad could no longer subdue the Syrian Sunni Arabs only by exploiting the ideological struggle against Israel. In the revolt, Assad saw an excellent opportunity to cleanse Syria of significant numbers of Sunni Arabs and to cement his power by increasing the percentage of Alawites and tipping the ethnic balance in their favor.
The regime of Bashir al-Assad used military force in their efforts to bring the protests of the Sunni Arabs under control. Several resistance centers then spontaneously emerged, which later became multiple armed resistance groups. Many small and large groups emerged—at least dozens and possibly hundreds—all of which possessed very different ideologies or without any ideology at all. Some groups contained as few as ten men, whereas others comprised tens of thousands. Despite these differences between the groups, there was a common feeling among them all of hatred of the Assad family and Bashir al-Assad. Some small groups fought against the Assad regime because their relatives were killed by Assad’s butchers, others participated to defend their religious and spiritual rights against infidels, and some were paid mercenaries. Several groups fought to receive the military training that would be useful to them in attempting to liberate their own countries, whereas others fought purely for criminal purposes. Thus, Syria has become a crucible for future partisans, terrorists, and groups with strong arm-brotherhood, large networks of transnational contacts, and good training in the use of arms, military tactics, and even military strategy. A description of all these armed groups and their aims is beyond the scope of this review. However, several groups will be described because this is necessary to gain an understanding of the dynamics of the war.
The Russian Federation is following in the footsteps of the USSR and the Russian Empire, fighting with hidden forces based on the principle “их там нету” (“they are not our men”). In “How That Massive Battle between US Troops and Russian Mercenaries in Syria Went Down” https://taskandpurpose.com/russian-mercenaries-syria-firefight, it was noted that “Russian ‘volunteers’ (PMCs) had been killed in the strikes” [
The Kurdish participation in the Syrian war is complex. Kurds have been present on all fronts as compact military forces, and they have fought against nearly all the other groups and cooperated with both sides at different stages of the war. Their central concerns have been liberation from the Assad regime and resistance to Turkey. As a result of the partition of the Ottoman Empire following the Armistice of Mudros [
Uyghurs follow Sunni Islam, Atheism, and Buddhism. The majority of these people are concentrated in China, in the Xinjiang province where they have a population of around 15 million, but significant numbers also live in Kazakhstan (250,000), Uzbekistan (60,000), Kyrgyzstan (50,000), Turkey (50,000), Saudi Araba (50,000), and Australia (10,000). Another 10,000 are spread across Pakistan, Russia, Canada, the USA, Japan, and Ukraine. Uyghurs are of Turkic ethnicity. They fought under Turkish military command in the Idlib province. Following Erdogan’s doctrine to guard the Turkic ethnic population in Syria and to claim the Ottoman Empire territories, and to presenting Erdogan as a non-disputable leader of Islam Turks’ have been involved in the Syrian civil war. Uyghurs have been involved in the Syrian war with the aim of receiving training and skills in combat and partisan warfare, for later use against the Chinese in the Xinjiang province.
Russia has been and is a main force for instability in the Middle East, North Africa, South America, and elsewhere in the world. Today’s Russian Federation is the successor of the former Soviet Union, which in turn was the clear successor of the Russian Empire. The geopolitical, military, and economic aspirations of the Russian Federation have not changed from those of the Russian Empire. A famous Russian song entitled “Fly migratory birds” illustrates the cynicism and perversity of the imperialistic credo of Russia. The song is from 1960 or 1970. The words of the song, written by Isakovsky with music composed by Blanter, can be translated as: “I do not need Turkish coast and Africa I do not need… I do not need the alien sun and alien land is not needed to me…” From the times of the Tsar Ivan IV “the Ivan Cruel” (1530-1584), and even before that, Russia’s goal has been the invasion and conquest of territories in Europe and Asia, especially those in route to the Middle East. The conquest of Crimea was accomplished by Ekaterina II (1729-1796), who was the Russian Tsarina from 1762. Crimea was taken from the Ottoman Empire (Turkey) at that time, and it was annexed by Russia again in recent times, this time taking it from Ukraine. Azov was taken by Tsar Peter I (1672-1725) from the Ottoman Empire. Having a presence on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean has been a priority of Russian imperialism. During the time of Tsar Ivan IV, the Novgorod and Pskov republics were destroyed and included in the Russian Empire, as were parts of Livonia and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Tsar Ivan IV also conquered the Kazan, Astrakhan, and Siberian Khanates. Then, as now, Russia’s neighbors did not feel safe from potential conquest.
In the 1920s, Communist Russia attempted to establish a socialist republic in Iran, the Iran Socialist Soviet Republic or the Soviet Republic of Gilan [
In 1948, Stalin was hopeful that the then newly established state of Israel would join the socialist camp and become a satellite of Russia, and he was deeply suspicious of the Arab countries. After the Jewish state instead of choosing Socialism had chosen to ally with the West, Stalin decided to eliminate the entire Jewish population in Russia and commenced by organizing an anti-Semitic campaign known as the doctors’ plot or the process against poisoners, in which a group of mainly Jewish doctors from Moscow were accused of planning to assassinate Soviet leaders. Later, the USSR leader Khrushchev was less fastidious than Stalin in his political choices and he decided to provoke the Arab leaders against the West, by making use of the Arab confrontation with Israel. In this way, he was able to put Russia’s foot on Middle East soil. Khrushchev provoked the leader of Egypt, Nasser, to nationalize the Suez Canal, igniting the Suez Crisis and the Second Arab-Israeli War in 1956 [
Iranians have been the opponents of the Arabs from ancient times, as evidenced by the Iranian revolution propaganda, (the Islamic revolution in 1979) [
Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Turkey are on the same side of the barricade in the struggle against the Bashir al-Assad regime. However, they have different goals and aims. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are generally protectors of Sunni Muslims against such “cursed infidels” as the Russians. They have demonstrated their support of Afghan’ partisans against the Russian invasion and occupation of Afghanistan in 1979 [
The economic motives of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates regarding the competition on the hydrocarbon market have been very important as competition with Russia. The situation has intensified after Russia’s intrigue with Assad prevented construction of the gas pipeline through Syria; the pipeline was also important to the USA in competing with Russia for influence in Europe on the market of hydrocarbons.
Under Erdogan’s leadership, Turkey has begun attempts to restore the Ottoman Empire by presenting Erdogan itself as the main defender of Muslims, reacting sharply to Israel, and opposing the USA and Europe. Turkey’ aim has been to regain control of the territories lost by the Ottoman Empire after World War I [
It is incorrect to consider that the USA sympathizes with any particular side in any conflict and this is particularly the case in the Syrian conflict. The USA has its own agenda, which is complicated and changes in relation to the situation and from Obama to Trump leadership. The main goals of the USA are being able to compete with the two other superstates, Russia and China, as well as with the EU and regional powers (e.g., Turkey, Iran, and Israel) for military and economic dominance in the region. The USA supports a broad array of countries and, although its actions can be correct at the distinct moment of time when they are applied, often they heavily conflict with its long-term interests. As an example, consider the conflict of interests regarding the oil businesses of the USA and its allies, which has resulted in the betrayal of the Shah of Iran and the Iranian Islamic revolution. It has indisputably occurred with the heavy engagement of two EU countries, France and Germany. Also, the poor judgment and short-term perspective of the USA leadership led Iraq to war with Iran, which led to a disproportionate growth in military power in Iraq and the total disobedience of Saddam Hussein to the interests of USA, particularly given his close relations with Russia. The chain of events developed following aggression by Iraq toward Kuwait. It would not have happened without intrigues in the USA administration and the involvement of State Secretary Fulbright. The need to repair the damage has led the USA into two Iraq wars. However, the defeat of Iraq has destroyed the balance of power between Iraq and Iran and in the Middle East in general. This has given Iran the opportunity for expansion and it has developed as a threat to USA interests in the Middle East and elsewhere. The tragedy of people of Iraq has become the tragedy of the Sunni Arab majority, Sunni Arab majority which has been made subject to the Kurdish Shia administration, the Shia administration which have been close-related with Iran’ ayatollahs. This ignited resistance by the Sunni Arabs and the situation became as it is today—involving the appearance of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. A relatively small problem (the realization of oil businesses) in the past has become a major problem in the present (international state-sponsored terrorism of Iran) for all countries in the region and also for the USA.
Turkey’s motives in becoming involved in Syria have been partly described in subsection 3.3. Its primary aims are to regain the former Ottoman Empire territories under Turkish control, to defend the Turks’ national minorities and, if possible, the Sunni Muslims, and to assist countries with a Turks’ majority. In Syria, Turkey has tried to fulfill three of these important goals: defending a Turkish national minority, defending the Sunni Muslims, and regaining territories of the former Ottoman Empire. In addition, in Syria, Turkey is fighting against the possible establishment of a Kurdish national entity or Kurdistan as an independent national state. This last aim conflicts with the interests of the USA and Iran. Iran has an overwhelming influence on the Kurds governing Iraq. The spread of Kurdish sovereignty to Syrian territories populated with Kurds is a direct threat to Turkey but would suit Iran. Iranians and Turks are historical enemies as Iranians and Arabs are.
Iranians or Persians have been the primary nationals in the Persian Kingdom or Empire (Iran) in the past. Today, the ethnic composition of the Islamic Republic of Iran is as follows: Persians 61%, Azeri 16%, Kurds 10%, Lur 6%, Baloch 2%, Arabs 2%, Turkmen and Turkic tribes 2%, and “other” 1% (as of 2008 [
The Islamic Republic of Iran was established after the Islamic revolution from 1978-79, following a referendum in April 1979 [
Modern Israel is 71 years old. Israel (/ɪzriəl, ˈɪzreɪəl/; Hebrew: יִשְׂרָאֵל; Arabic: إِسْرَائِيل) has been at war with its Arab neighbors from the first day of its declaration of independence. In recent decades, peace treaties have been concluded between Israel and Egypt, and between Israel the Kingdom of Jordan. With other Arab countries, Israel is formally or in reality at war. After the Yom Kippur War (1973), Israel has had a disengagement agreement with Syria. Syria never recognized the state of Israel. Syria allied itself with Iran during the 2006 Lebanon War by supporting Hezbollah and allowed Iran to ship supplies to Hezbollah through Syria. At present, Israel and Iran are sworn enemies. Israel has a population of 8,995,180 and its official religion is Hebrew (Judaism), with all other religions permitted freely, including atheism. Israel’s religious composition is as follows: 74.7% Jewish, 17.7% Muslim, 2% Christian, 1.6% Druze, and 4% “other” [
China is a very old civilization, more than 4000 years old. From its earliest history, it was organized as a state. At times, China was one kingdom, whereas at other times it was composed of several kingdoms. In 1949, China became the People’s Republic of China. Today, China has become the second largest superpower in the world. It is difficult to determine the exact number of people living in China, but it is estimated at somewhere between 1 and 1.5 billion. There are around 150 million Muslims in China, making them a significant minority. The Uyghurs are Muslims who mainly live in the Xinjiang province (see subsection 2.5. above) and in neighboring Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan claims that parts of Xinjiang province belonged to the old Kazakh khaganate and should be part of Kazakhstan. Several terrorist acts have been registered that were perpetrated by Uyghur nationalists against the Chinese. The government of China is aware of a large number of Uyghurs who participated in military actions in Syria and the support given to the Uyghurs by the Erdogan government of Turkey. When the war ends in Syria, these militant Uyghurs will be able to infiltrate China and become a threat to the stability in the country, especially with the support of Turkey and Kazakhstan.
Many countries and even more political interests have been and still are involved in the civil war in Syria; no country is involved purely because it wishes to protect the Sunni Arabs against ethnic cleansing by the al-Assad regime.
The USA under the Trump administration has declared it is not interested in being involved in any new military conflict that will require it to “put boots on enemy ground”.
Israel (in April 2019) has demonstrated that the situation in Syria with al-Assad in the leadership suits its interests. At the beginning of the civil war in Syria, Israel gave support to the Assad opposition. However, in April 2019, Israel returned two Syrian citizens from detention in Israel to Syria. One of these detainees was a contrabandist and the second had been detained for terrorist activity. Why, when Israel was hostile to the Assad regime eight years ago, has it suddenly become kind to the Assad regime in April 2019? The answer is complicated.
The “senior” defender of the rights of Palestine Arabs and Sunni Arabs, the “Sultan” of Turkey, Erdogan, does not intend to return major parts of Idlib province to Syrian sovereignty. This has opened up the possibility that the country will be partitioned. Erdogan’s occupation of part of Idlib province in Syria and its absence of intentions to return this territory made it easier forPresident of USA Trump to recognize Israeli sovereignty on parts of Golan Heights. As long as Syria’s territory remains divided, with parts of it controlled by Turkey, with parts of it controlled by the Kurds, and with parts of it controlled by anti-Assad partisans, Israel is comfortable with the presidency of Bashir al-Assad. While this situation persists, Israel has a stronger position in terms of keeping the Golan Heights under Israeli sovereignty. Thus, Turkey has directly harmed the Arabs’ interests, despite all of Erdogan’s rhetoric.
In case of conflict with the USA, it is in Iran’s interests to create a strong position in the Middle East by holding Israel as a potential hostage.
Islamic Republic of Iran and Hezbollah will fight “to the last Sunni Arab life in Syria”.
Russia has a longstanding interest in having military bases in Syria in case of confrontation with the USA and the Western countries. For Russia is comfortable to have Bashir al-Assad as the ruler of Syria, although any other who will give Russia the right to have military bases in Syria will also be accepted.
The Kurds’ interests differ from those of the Arabs’. The Kurds are attempting to establish the sovereign entity; however, this is not realistic without USA’ support. The Iranian influence on the Kurds is contrary to USA interests. As always Kurds will end without winning.
Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates are trying to assist the Sunni in Syria. They are competing with Russia in the oil and gas market, they are also under heavy threat from Iran. They cannot prevail alone over Iran, and they are seeking help from all Sunni and all Semitic countries, including Egypt, Jordan, Turkey, Pakistan and even Israel, which is also in confrontation with Iran.
China is seeking a neutralization of the Uyghurs nationalists who are participating in the civil war in Syria and have support from Turkey. This could potentially lead to confrontation between China and Turkey.
Thus, in Syria, two main blocks have appeared in terms of potential Global confrontations: the USA, NATO, and the United Sunni and Semite countries, versus infidels and various terrorist organizations.
The Syrian Civil War is a crime against Sunni Arabs, the crime has been perpetrated and is committed by infidels.
The Alawite-Iranian-Hezbollah-Russian coalition must be put under trial at the International Tribunal for the Genocide and an Ethnic Cleansing of Sunni Arabs in Syria by perpetrating of Civil War.
The author declares no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this paper.
Brondz, I. (2019) I Am Accusing the Coalition of Alawite-Iranian-Hezbollah-Russian Federation in the Genocide and in an Ethnic Cleansing in Syria. Voice of the Publisher, 5, 13-34. https://doi.org/10.4236/vp.2019.52002