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Syrian war is now a decade old

Saturday, 13 March 2021 1:42 AM [ Last Update: Saturday, 13 March 2021 1:42 AM ]

Murtaza Jaffer

Press TV, London

Ten brutal years have passed in Syria. A decade of upheaval, conflict and displacement with no end in sight. while military campaigns have somewhat abated, the human suffering is reaching an all time high.

Western backed groups suffered their greatest defeats in 2017 &18 but since then the U.S. and the EU have ramped up economic sanctions designed to starve the country into regime change. Earlier in the week EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell reiterated no end to sanctions, no normalization and no support for reconstruction until a political transition.

The effects have been harrowing. According to the world food program, in the last year alone, millions of Syrians have fallen into severe levels of poverty - and with the global pandemic the situation is bordering critical.

According to the UN, the price of food is now 33 times higher than before the war with an estimated 12.5 million people struggling to find enough food each day. British charity Save the Children have estimated more than 60% of children are facing hunger. Similar numbers can be found amongst the 5.6 million refugees now living in neighboring countries. Rates of suicide and self harm are now beginning to rise.

The last ten years have also seen efforts to find a political solution, with talks in Geneva, Vienna and Doha, but if western sanctions persist, then talks are ultimately futile. For many any lasting resolution can only be brokered by the Syrians themselves. Only time will tell if or when this can be achieved.

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