Just how bad is the situation in Syria? Four million Syrians have fled the country in the past four years as its cities smolder and civil war rages on. Strategic dysfunction on the part of the international community, led by the US, continued airstrikes, and growing violence perpetrated by the Islamic State are definitely part of the story that led to Syria’s descent into chaos. RadioWhoWhatWhy’s Jeff Schechtman sits down with Charles Glass, author of Syria Burning, to learn the rest of it.
The Middle East has been in one kind of “crisis” or another since the end of World War I, nearly a century ago. However, the US-led invasion of Iraq, coupled with a civil war in neighboring Syria, has led to an unprecedented devolution into chaos, which the Islamic State is now trying to capitalize on.
Last week, WhoWhatWhy published an excerpt from Syria Burning to give our readers a glimpse into this chaotic part of the world and the “confused” role the US currently plays in it. Today, we sit down with the book’s author to delve deeper.
Foreign Correspondent Charles Glass provides WhoWhatWhy with a first-hand report on events in Syria and Iraq and puts them into context. The countries are more than pieces on a geopolitical chessboard. A fourth of Syria’s population are now refugees with very little hope of being able to return to their homes.
The author tells WhoWhatWhy’s Jeff Schechtman that he sees this conflict as a proxy war that neither side can win unless the US, Russia and Iran work together to help end the war. Will that ever happen?
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