What Happened to Syria?

Merry Christmas! Sadly, the World Food Program has had their funding cut by 60 percent. Also, we are currently listed among the Top Five Syria-related podcasts on Feedspot.com (https://podcasts.feedspot.com/syria_podcasts/). Check us out there and help us get up to the #1 spot. Sources / Quotes: https://www.wfp.org/news/wfp-forced-scale-down-operations-syria-donors-gather-brussels-ahead-major-conference https://www.wfp.org/news/tight-funding-forces-wfp-reduce-food-assistance-syrian-refugees-jordan-including-camps https://www.unhcr.org/us/emergencies/venezuela-situation https://www.unhcr.org/us/emergencies/dr-congo-emergency https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/a-record-6-9-million-people-have-been-displaced-in-congos-growing-conflict-the-u-n-says https://www.iom.int/news/record-high-displacement-drc-nearly-7-million https://www.cfr.org/blog/catastrophic-displacement-democratic-republic-congo https://www.unhcr.org/us/emergencies/syria-emergency https://www.unhcr.org/us/emergencies/ukraine-emergency https://www.unhcr.org/us/emergencies/rohingya-emergency https://www.unhcr.org/us/emergencies/afghanistan-emergency https://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/how-many-refugees/2/ https://www.kiva.org/blog/where-do-refugees-come-from-and-where-do-they-go https://www.statista.com/statistics/272999/refugees-by-source-country/ https://www.worldvision.org/refugees-news-stories/forced-to-flee-top-countries-refugees-coming-from https://www.unhcr.org/refugee-statistics/ https://concernusa.org/news/largest-refugee-crises/ https://www.france24.com/en/middle-east/20230620-key-figures-record-high-numbers-of-refugees-and-displaced-people-worldwide https://www.unrwa.org/resources/reports/unrwa-situation-report-44-situation-gaza-strip-and-west-bank-including-east-Jerusalem?__cf_chl_tk=jT9ELr.V5lDgrzvo7UkBg1AN_dvJ8Gin0VBYa_LtOR4-1703204552-0-gaNycGzNIVA https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/israel-hamas-war-gaza-tent-city-rafah-bombardment-sheets-buckets-rcna129543 https://www.worldvision.org/refugees-news-stories/rohingya-refugees-bangladesh-facts https://www.unhcr.org/us/emergencies/rohingya-emergency https://www.wfp.org/news/rohingya-refugees-bangladesh-face-grim-choices-more-cuts-food-assistance-imminent

The Assad regime starts to crack under the pressure of increasingly large, passionate, cross-sectarian protests. Millions of people are taking to the streets and voicing dissent for the first time in their lives, putting the regime's legitimacy in doubt for the first time in decades. This prompts Bashar al-Assad to authorize a campaign of repression across Syria, among the earliest of his crimes against humanity. Also, we are currently listed among the Top Five Syria-related podcasts on Feedspot.com (https://podcasts.feedspot.com/syria_podcasts/). Check us out there and help us get up to the #1 spot. Sources / Quotes: Civil War in Syria by Baczko, et. al The Impossible Revolution by Yassin al-Haj Saleh We Crossed a Bridge and It Trembled by Dr. Wendy Pearlman Assad or We Burn the Country by Sam Dagher Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and War by Robin Yassin-Kassab and Leila al-Shami A Woman in the Crossfire by Samar Yazbek Syria by Dr. David Lesch Shatter the Nations by Mike Giglio “Syrian Revolution Song,” The Arabic Student http://www.thearabicstudent.com/2012/02/syrian-revolution-song.html Syrian Revolutionary Dabke - YouTube (“Yalla Erhal ya Bashar” by Ibrahim Qashoush) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCS8SsFOBAI “Amnesty accuses Syria of crimes against humanity,” BBC News https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14032765 “Syria: Assad no longer legitimate, says Clinton,” BBC News https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14115762 “At least 30 killed in factional fighting in Syria” by Mariam Karouney and Oliver Holmes, Reuters https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-syria-idUKTRE76F26V20110718?edition-redirect=uk

We're breaking up Episode 15 - Crimes Against Humanity (June 24 to July 31, 2011) into four smaller episodes before putting out the full thing. The Assad regime starts to crack under the pressure of increasingly large, passionate, cross-sectarian protests. Millions of people are taking to the streets and voicing dissent for the first time in their lives, putting the regime's legitimacy in doubt for the first time in decades. Also, we are currently listed among the Top Five Syria-related podcasts on Feedspot.com https://podcasts.feedspot.com/syria_podcasts/. Check us out there and help us get up to the #1 spot. Sources / Quotes: Civil War in Syria by Baczko, et. al The Impossible Revolution by Yassin al-Haj Saleh We Crossed a Bridge and It Trembled by Dr. Wendy Pearlman Assad or We Burn the Country by Sam Dagher Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and War by Robin Yassin-Kassab and Leila al-Shami A Woman in the Crossfire by Samar Yazbek Syria by Dr. David Lesch Shatter the Nations by Mike Giglio “Syrian Revolution Song,” The Arabic Student http://www.thearabicstudent.com/2012/02/syrian-revolution-song.html Syrian Revolutionary Dabke - YouTube (“Yalla Erhal ya Bashar” by Ibrahim Qashoush) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCS8SsFOBAI “Amnesty accuses Syria of crimes against humanity,” BBC News https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14032765 “Syria: Assad no longer legitimate, says Clinton,” BBC News https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14115762 “At least 30 killed in factional fighting in Syria” by Mariam Karouney and Oliver Holmes, Reuters https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-syria-idUKTRE76F26V20110718?edition-redirect=uk

We're breaking up Episode 15 - Crimes Against Humanity (June 24 to July 31, 2011) into four smaller episodes before putting out the full thing. The Assad regime starts to crack under the pressure of increasingly large, passionate, cross-sectarian protests. Millions of people are taking to the streets and voicing dissent for the first time in their lives, putting the regime's legitimacy in doubt for the first time in decades. Sources / Quotes: Civil War in Syria by Baczko, et. al The Impossible Revolution by Yassin al-Haj Saleh We Crossed a Bridge and It Trembled by Dr. Wendy Pearlman Assad or We Burn the Country by Sam Dagher Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and War by Robin Yassin-Kassab and Leila al-Shami A Woman in the Crossfire by Samar Yazbek Syria by Dr. David Lesch Shatter the Nations by Mike Giglio “Syrian Revolution Song,” The Arabic Student http://www.thearabicstudent.com/2012/02/syrian-revolution-song.html Syrian Revolutionary Dabke - YouTube (“Yalla Erhal ya Bashar” by Ibrahim Qashoush) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCS8SsFOBAI “Amnesty accuses Syria of crimes against humanity,” BBC News https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14032765 “Syria: Assad no longer legitimate, says Clinton,” BBC News https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14115762 “At least 30 killed in factional fighting in Syria” by Mariam Karouney and Oliver Holmes, Reuters https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-syria-idUKTRE76F26V20110718?edition-redirect=uk

We're breaking up Episode 15 - Crimes Against Humanity (June 24 to July 31, 2011) into four smaller episodes before putting out the full thing. The Assad regime starts to crack under the pressure of increasingly large, passionate, cross-sectarian protests. Millions of people are taking to the streets and voicing dissent for the first time in their lives, putting the regime's legitimacy in doubt for the first time in decades. Sources / Quotes: Civil War in Syria by Baczko, et. al The Impossible Revolution by Yassin al-Haj Saleh We Crossed a Bridge and It Trembled by Dr. Wendy Pearlman Assad or We Burn the Country by Sam Dagher Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and War by Robin Yassin-Kassab and Leila al-Shami A Woman in the Crossfire by Samar Yazbek Syria by Dr. David Lesch Shatter the Nations by Mike Giglio “Syrian Revolution Song,” The Arabic Student http://www.thearabicstudent.com/2012/02/syrian-revolution-song.html Syrian Revolutionary Dabke - YouTube (“Yalla Erhal ya Bashar” by Ibrahim Qashoush) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCS8SsFOBAI “Amnesty accuses Syria of crimes against humanity,” BBC News https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14032765 “Syria: Assad no longer legitimate, says Clinton,” BBC News https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14115762 “At least 30 killed in factional fighting in Syria” by Mariam Karouney and Oliver Holmes, Reuters https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-syria-idUKTRE76F26V20110718?edition-redirect=uk

We're breaking up Episode 15 - Crimes Against Humanity (June 24 to July 31, 2011) into four smaller episodes before putting out the full thing. The Assad regime starts to crack under the pressure of increasingly large, passionate, cross-sectarian protests. Millions of people are taking to the streets and voicing dissent for the first time in their lives, putting the regime's legitimacy in doubt for the first time in decades. Sources / Quotes: Civil War in Syria by Baczko, et. al The Impossible Revolution by Yassin al-Haj Saleh We Crossed a Bridge and It Trembled by Dr. Wendy Pearlman Assad or We Burn the Country by Sam Dagher Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and War by Robin Yassin-Kassab and Leila al-Shami A Woman in the Crossfire by Samar Yazbek Syria by Dr. David Lesch Shatter the Nations by Mike Giglio “Syrian Revolution Song,” The Arabic Student http://www.thearabicstudent.com/2012/02/syrian-revolution-song.html Syrian Revolutionary Dabke - YouTube (“Yalla Erhal ya Bashar” by Ibrahim Qashoush) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCS8SsFOBAI “Amnesty accuses Syria of crimes against humanity,” BBC News https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14032765 “Syria: Assad no longer legitimate, says Clinton,” BBC News https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14115762 “At least 30 killed in factional fighting in Syria” by Mariam Karouney and Oliver Holmes, Reuters https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-syria-idUKTRE76F26V20110718?edition-redirect=uk

Explaining the absence and examining the Syrian refugee crisis, as well as the situation for refugees across the world in 2022. Sources / Quotes: “Boat carrying Syrian refugees lands in Southern Italy,” Reuters https://www.reuters.com/article/us-syria-crisis-italy-boat-idUSBRE8780L720120809 “Syria Refugee Crisis Explained,” The UN Refugee Agency https://www.unrefugees.org/news/syria-refugee-crisis-explained/#:~:text=More%20than%206.8%20million%20Syrians,in%20T%C3%BCrkiye%2C%20Lebanon%20and%20Jordan. “Eleven years on, mounting challenges push many displaced Syrians to the brink,” The UN Refugee Agency https://www.unhcr.org/en-us/news/briefing/2022/3/623055174/eleven-years-mounting-challenges-push-displaced-syrians-brink.html “You’re Going to Your Death: Violations Against Syrian Refugees Returning to Syria,” Amnesty International https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde24/4583/2021/en/ “Afghanistan: How many refugees are there and where will they go?” BBC News https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-58283177 “Displacement, humanitarian needs surging inside Afghanistan and across region,” UN News https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/02/1111532 “What is Next For Afghans Who Fled to the United States?” Rescue.org https://www.rescue.org/article/what-next-afghans-who-fled-united-states “Floods, fighting, and famine: Inside South Sudan’s triple crisis,” by Sam Mednick, The New Humanitarian https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/news-feature/2021/2/8/floods-fighting-famine-south-sudan-crisis “The Incredible Story of Task Force Pineapple,” History in Five, YouTube.com https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fV2CFvzewrA “Irpin’s Bridge of Death,” by Oz Katerji, New Lines Magazine https://newlinesmag.com/reportage/irpins-bridge-of-death/

Bernd Debusmann was a young Reuters bureau chief when Lebanon imploded into civil war and anarchy in the 1970s, during which Syria and Hafez al-Assad became intimately involved the conflict. This talented and daring journalist took to war-torn Beirut like a duck to water, risking his life to interview combatants on all sides and civilians caught in the cross-fire, eventually running afoul of the Assad regime for reporting on their intervention in Lebanon and atrocities committed in Syria. This prompted Syrian intelligence officers to threaten his life. Several Western journalists fled Lebanon after receiving similar death threats, but Bernd stubbornly refused to be intimidated. The Assad regime then resorted to, "censorship by bullet" and attempted to assassinate him in 1980. Bernd survived and still walks around with a bullet in his back, to this day. And that wasn't even the first time he got shot in Lebanon. You won't want to miss this incredible interview with a man who frequently put his life on the line to inform the public and now shares valuable insight on a bygone era. The Lebanese Civil War and Syria's role in the conflict are largely forgotten today, but their long-term consequences reverberate into the present day.

We're starting a new holiday tradition, an episode focused on refugees and other humanitarian issues in Syria. As early as 2011, tens of thousands of people were forced to flee the country. Today, more than six million displaced Syrians are demonized by hateful individuals and political movements all over the world. Mesud (@MaybeMesud on Twitter) describes how he and his family were forced to leave Aleppo and the challenges they faced not only during the journey but also while establishing a new life in Turkey. Sources “Nearly 10,000 Syrian refugees in Turkey,” Yahoo! News https://web.archive.org/web/20110623163253/https://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110617/wl_mideast_afp/syriaviolenceturkeyrefugees_20110617130011 Music licensing Fragments by Nomyn https://soundcloud.com/nomyn Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: http://bit.ly/l-fragments Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/ndyyIhwojys Ultimate Metal by Loyalty Freak Creative Commons - CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Loyalty_Freak_Music/HYPER_METAL_/Loyalty_Freak_Music_-_HYPER_METAL__-_08_ULTIMATE_METAL

How do you organize a leaderless movement? The Syrian Revolution was a decentralized movement of localized cells, but enterprising activists still managed to coordinate with each other and reach out to the outside world. We examine how the Local Coordination Committees attempted to create a post-Assad government before speaking to a civil society activist who still resides in Syria. We also speak with Ahmad, an engineer and civil society activist who has spent the last ten years enduring horror after horror and tragedy after tragedy in order to establish a Free Syria. Ahmad is the first guest to call us directly from Syria, where he is currently hiding from both the regime and jihadists. He doesn't have anything good to say about either one, for what it's worth. Sources “How the Syrian Revolution was Organized - And How it Unraveled,” by Zaina Erhaim, New Lines Magazine Syria by Samer N. Abboud "U.S. Secretly backed Syrian opposition groups, cables released by WikiLeaks show," by Craig Whitlock, The Washington Post https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/us-secretly-backed-syrian-opposition-groups-cables-released-by-wikileaks-show/2011/04/14/AF1p9hwD_story.html Music Licensing Fragments by Nomyn https://soundcloud.com/nomyn Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: http://bit.ly/l-fragments Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/ndyyIhwojys "Emotional Sad Piano Music" by Mattia Cupelli https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JYHk_D5A44 "Yalla Erhal Ya Bashar" by Ibrahim Qashoush "Jannah, Jannah, Jannah," sung by Abdul-Baset al-Sarout

Supporters and opponents of the Assad regime are becoming irrevocably alienated from one another, sowing the seeds for a future war between Assad's Syria versus Free Syria. Sources A Woman in the Crossfire by Samar Yazbek Assad or We Burn the Country by Sam Dagher The Impossible Revolution by Yassin al-Haj Saleh The Syrian Revolution by Dr. Yasser Munif Civil War in Syria by Bakzo, et. al The Home That Was Our Country by Alia Malek Syria: The Fall of the House of Assad by Dr. David Lesch We Crossed a Bridge and It Trembled by Dr. Wendy Pearlman Music Licensing “Yalla Erhal Ya Bashar” by Ibrahim Qashoush Fragments by Nomyn https://soundcloud.com/nomyn Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: http://bit.ly/l-fragments Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/ndyyIhwojys Fire Away by Forget the Whale Creative Commons - Attribution-Non Comercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Forget_the_Whale/you-me-talk-now/fire-away-instrumental Genocide by Silent Carrion Creative Commons - attribution-noncommercial-noderivatives 4.0 international (cc by-nc-nd 4.0) https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Silent_Carrion/Suprematism_EP_III_Sol/Silent_Carrion_-_Suprematism_EP_III_Sol_-_01_Genocide "Emotional Sad Piano Music" by Mattia Cupelli https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JYHk_D5A44

Jeff Butler's multifaceted career made him the perfect guest for THE TERROR. A warfighter, a CIA counterterrorism specialist, and now a first responder. His perspective is truly one-of-a-kind. You can find Mr. Butler on Twitter at @SOFFru1 "Deliverance" by Aliaksei Yukhenevich https://tunetank.com/tracks/3960-deliverance/

There are too many amazing heroes among the Syrians who protested in 2011 to fit into a single episode. This is our second attempt at an ongoing effort to commemorate the heroes of the Syrian Revolution. Ghiath Matar, Fadwa Soleiman, Bassel Shehadeh, a certain iconic goalkeeper-turned-singer from Homs, and other incredible individuals make appearances in this tribute to people whose bravery and sacrifices deserve to be remembered. Thank you to @SubhiXCIV and @proud_damascene for the help you provided with this episode. Sources: We Crossed a Bridge and It Trembled by Dr. Wendy Pearlman A Woman in the Crossfire: Diaries of the Syrian Revolution by Samar Yazbek Burning Country by Robin Yassin-Kassab “Syrian Christians Feel Pull From Both Sides In Civil War,” The Washington Times “The Days of Abd al-Basset” al-Jumhuriya.net “Abdel-Basset al-Sarout: Controversial Singer of Syria’s War,” Al-Jazeera Music Licensing Fragments by Nomyn https://soundcloud.com/nomyn Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: http://bit.ly/l-fragments Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/ndyyIhwojys "Emotional Sad Piano Music" by Mattia Cupelli https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JYHk_D5A44

DISTURBING CONTENT WARNING There is no turning back for Syria after this episode. The Syrian Opposition is nearing its breaking point after months of being massacred, mass-arrested, and mass-tortured by the Assad regime. But all hell breaks loose when the public discovers the torture and murder of 13-year-old Hamza Ali al-Khateeb, leading to the largest protests to take place thus far as well as the first confirmed BATTLE between regime loyalists and armed opposition. Sources: “We’ve Never Seen Such Horror,” Human Rights Watch Syria by Dr. Samer N. Abboud The Fall of the House of Assad by Dr. David Lesch We Crossed a Bridge and It Trembled by Dr. Wendy Pearlman My Country by Kassem Eid No Turning Back by Rania Abouzeid The Home That Was Our Country by Alia Malek Assad or We Burn the Country by Sam Dagher Civil War in Syria by Bakzo, et. al The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli Music Licensing: Fragments by Nomyn https://soundcloud.com/nomyn Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: http://bit.ly/l-fragments Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/ndyyIhwojys Arrow Arrow by Aglow Hollow Creative Commons - Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) https://freemusicarchive.org/music/aglow_hollow/Proximate_Laws_Baba_Yaga_Booty_Calls/arrow-arrow Ultimate Metal by Loyalty Freak Creative Commons - CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Loyalty_Freak_Music/HYPER_METAL_/Loyalty_Freak_Music_-_HYPER_METAL__-_08_ULTIMATE_METAL Genocide by Silent Carrion Creative Commons - attribution-noncommercial-noderivatives 4.0 international (cc by-nc-nd 4.0) https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Silent_Carrion/Suprematism_EP_III_Sol/Silent_Carrion_-_Suprematism_EP_III_Sol_-_01_Genocide

Episode 11 - The Last Straw is taking longer than expected to edit. Here's an excerpt to tide everyone over until the full episode is done. Sources Cited: "We've Never Seen Such Horror" by Human Rights Watch Music Licensing Genocide by Silent Carrion Creative Commons - attribution-noncommercial-noderivatives 4.0 international (cc by-nc-nd 4.0) https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Silent_Carrion/Suprematism_EP_III_Sol/Silent_Carrion_-_Suprematism_EP_III_Sol_-_01_Genocide Fragments by Nomyn https://soundcloud.com/nomyn Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: http://bit.ly/l-fragments Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/ndyyIhwojys

This might be our most controversial episode, yet. What is the relationship between the Assad regime and Syrian Kurds? How did Kurds react to the Syrian revolution? Why is it that a majority of Syrian Kurds came to prefer the YPG over the Free Syrian Army? A lot of it has to do with societal attitudes that go back decades before the Syrian Revolution. Peshmerge is a Syrian Kurd from Aleppo who participated in the 2011 protests and vehemently supported the Syrian Opposition. His opinion changed as the opposition gradually changed from a big tent movement to one dominated by racists and religious fundamentalism. Music licensing: Come and Get It By Scott Holmes Creative Commons - Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Scott_Holmes/media-music-mix/come-and-get-it Fragments by Nomyn https://soundcloud.com/nomyn Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: http://bit.ly/l-fragments Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/ndyyIhwojys Genocide by Silent Carrion Creative Commons - attribution-noncommercial-noderivatives 4.0 international (cc by-nc-nd 4.0) https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Silent_Carrion/Suprematism_EP_III_Sol/Silent_Carrion_-_Suprematism_EP_III_Sol_-_01_Genocide

Yusuf was born in Manbij and gave up his job in Latakia to organize protests during the Syrian Revolution. The events of 2011 changed his life forever, resulting in the loss of his freedom (detained twice by the regime, plus once by ISIS) and eventually forcing him to leave Syria in 2015. Music licensing Fire Away by Forget the Whale Creative Commons - Attribution-Non Comercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Forget_the_Whale/you-me-talk-now/fire-away-instrumental

Twenty years ago, the world changed. The Terror is a 12-episode miniseries about 9/11, what led up to it, and it's aftermath. It's the story about how the Cold War led to 9/11 and the War on Terror. Aram Shabanian (@ShabanianAram on Twitter) has extensively researched the events of September 11, 2001 for two decades. He is currently a Non-State Actors Researcher at the Newlines Institute for Strategy and Policy. Music credits "Deep Noise" by Kevin MacLeod https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgB_L7Os5OA "Deliverance" by Aliaksei Yukhenevich https://tunetank.com/tracks/3960-deliverance/ "Emotional Sad Piano Music" by Mattia Cupelli https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JYHk_D5A44

Hey y'all, we're going to put out one or two more episodes before we take a month off. In the meantime, keep an eye out for The Terror, a 12-part miniseries about al-Qaeda, 9/11, and its aftermath due for release on September 11, 2021.

This week, the Syrian Revolution takes a bloody and tragic turn when the Assad regime begins to put restive towns and cities under military siege. Starvation, indiscriminate bombings, and other horrors associated with the Syrian Civil War (a label that many Syrians see as a misnomer) begin to be seen in mid-2011. Sources cited: Syria by Samer N. Abboud Civil War in Syria by Baczko, et al The Syrian Revolution by Yasser Munif Inside Syria’s Slaughter: A Journalist Sneaks Into Dara’a, the ‘Ghetto of Death’ by Christian Clanet for Le Monde, published in partnership with Worldcrunch and Time Magazine Impossible Revolution by Yassin al-Haj Saleh No Turning Back by Rania Abouzeid The Last Sanctuary in Aleppo by Alaa al-Jaleel Assad or We Burn the Country by Sam Dagher Music licensing: Fragments by Nomyn https://soundcloud.com/nomyn Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: http://bit.ly/l-fragments Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/ndyyIhwojys Genocide by Silent Carrion Creative Commons - attribution-noncommercial-noderivatives 4.0 international (cc by-nc-nd 4.0) https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Silent_Carrion/Suprematism_EP_III_Sol/Silent_Carrion_-_Suprematism_EP_III_Sol_-_01_Genocide