More Actors, More Casualties: in Syria, the War Goes On

“You’ll be rescued with blood,” a military officer of the Syrian regime told the people of Eastern Ghouta. Last week pro-government forces led airstrikes in the rebel-held locality near the capital Damascus killing at least 150, most of whom were civilians.

Earlier this month the same forces were bombed by the U.S. Air Force while attacking the Kurdish in the east of the country, defending their allies in the region. This defence strike killed at least 100 fighters, including a number of Russian mercenaries. Less than two weeks later, proxy forces backed by Damascus were moving to the northern border to fight Turkish forces which entered into Syrian territory in mid-January. Al-Assad backed forces will there fight along the same Kurdish forces that they attacked in the east. For both, Turkey is yet the main enemy.

The Syrian civil war which began in 2011 is today a gathering of conflicting powers where the line between allies and enemies is not clear. Since the territorial defeat of the Islamic State a few months ago, most parties in the conflict do not have a common goal anymore. With Russia backing Al-Assad, the U.S. backing the Kurds and the NATO member Turkey clashing both, the Syrian conflict has never been so intricate. Meanwhile, the humanitarian crisis continues.