ONSITE REGISTRATION AVAILABLE. NO NEED TO PRE REGISTER.
For over half a century, the Assad family brutally ruled and repressed the people of Syria. In 2011, as the Arab Spring unsettled much of the region, some governments fell or made modest reforms; but Bashar al-Assad chose to violently crush any and all dissent. When thousands of peaceful protesters were jailed, disappeared or killed by the regime, in time violent and sectarian elements emerged as the dominant forces opposing Assad’s rule.
As the country descended into chaos and a vicious civil war, Syria became a geopolitical focal point, not just for the major players in the region, but also Russia and the United States. Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States backed varying factions, many with Islamist or terrorist affiliations, that fought against Assad’s regime. The U.S. engaged militarily to support the Kurds in the East and attack ISIS and disrupt its goal of a dystopian and draconian Islamic Caliphate.
But the players who became the most deeply invested were Iran, Russia and Hezbollah. They collectively saved Assad’s regime from almost collapse, and then worked to greatly escalate and intensify the lethality of his military. For years, Hezbollah provided thousands of hardened fighters, Iran provided key military and intelligence guidance, and Russia’s air force flew thousands of sorties bombing military and civilian targets – a tactic well-rehearsed and then replicated in Ukraine.
Though even Iran and Russia encouraged Assad to consider talks with the opposition, he relentlessly attacked and hoped to subdue the many, large constituencies within the Syrian people, who opposed his rule. During over a decade of war, about 500,000 Syrians had been killed or died, about 12 million people or half of the population had been internally displaced or fled the country, and seemingly fixed lines of control had emerged.
But though the civil war had lasted 13 years, in less than 13 days and often against very little resistance, rebel factions rapidly took Aleppo, then Homa, Daraa, Homs and Damascus, which fell in about 48 hours. As Assad secretively fled to Russia and the open arms of Putin, millions of Syrians across the country celebrated, even knowing the great uncertainties that lie ahead.
Since the lead rebel force, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham HTS, began as an Al Qaeda affiliate, how rigid, intolerant and potentially adversarial might a newly emerging Syrian government be? What is to be made of the surprising rapid fall of Assad partially being the result of Iran, Hezbollah and Russia either not supporting or not being able to support him? How may these events impact Iran and Israel’s approach to the Gaza War and the war with Hezbollah? How might this impact U.S. policy in the region, the outlook for the Kurds, and the concerns of many Arab nations of an Islamist government taking hold in Syria?
Agenda
- 6:30 – 7:00pm – Registration & Networking
- 7:00 – 8:00pm – Program
