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Refugees fleeing the violence in Syria gather at an emergency camp for Syrians in Zaatari village, east of Mafraq Governorate, Jordan, on July 31, 2012.
News analysis
ISTANBUL, Turkey -- Earlier this year, a young Syrian man who along with his family found refuge in the safety of the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli, described his conflict-torn home country as being like a "stopper on a drain."
The stopper, he told me, had been removed and now the region was slowly being sucked down the drain.
His words may have been prescient. As the conflict in Syria drags on, the war is affecting neighboring countries and shaping politics in a way that threatens the stability of the region.
Opposition troops, led by the Free Syrian Army, have been battling President Bashar Assad’s forces for more than a year in an attempt to topple the regime.
Activists say that around 20,000 people have been killed since the start of the uprising -- that has since evolved into a full-fledged civil war -- in March last year.
Three fronts
The external impact of Syria’s internal fighting on neighboring countries can be summed up on three fronts: refugees and resources, sectarian tensions, and regional geopolitics.
The United Nations estimates that close to 200,000 refugees have escaped Syria into neighboring countries, including Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq.
Turkish officials say they have registered close to 65,000 refugees in their camps. Hundreds of Syrians there are being treated outside the official health care system in makeshift care centers in private buildings.
Recently, Jordan’s King Abdullah warned that the international community needs to do more to help countries cope with the refugees.
Jordan, directly south of Syria, is a country familiar with absorbing refugees. It currently shares borders with Israel, the West Bank, Iraq and Syria, among others, and over the decades has wrestled with how to handle refugee crises involving Palestinians, Lebanese, Iraqis and Syrians.
30 dead in Syrian air strike; strife spills into Lebanon
Jordan already has a struggling economy, and its infrastructure has been further strained by refugees in need of medical care, education and basic services.
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A Syrian refugee complains Thursday over the management of the Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan during a visit by French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius.
Lebanon has been slow to acknowledge a Syrian refugee problem in its territory. Because Syrians can move freely across the border, many of those escaping the fighting are staying with friends and relatives and not actually registering as refugees within the country. In turn, this also adds stress on local resources for a country with its own domestic economic woes.
Sectarian strains
Beyond the refugee and humanitarian crisis triggered by the Syrian conflict on neighboring countries, increased sectarian tensions in some of these countries are rapidly reflecting the divide within Syria itself.
UN investigators: War crimes perpetrated in Syria
On more than one occasion, deadly clashes have erupted inside Lebanon between supporters of Assad’s regime and the opposition trying to topple it. This fighting has mirrored the sectarian fault lines of Syria.
NBC News
People resisting the army of President Bashar Assad in northern Syria cope with loss and prepare for fighting.
The regime and its supporters are mainly drawn from Syria’s Alawite community, which is an offshoot sect of Shiite Islam. The rebel forces and the opposition are largely driven by Sunnis Muslims.
In recent days, Syrian rebels have seized dozens of men they claimed where Iranian and Lebanese Shiites sent to help the Assad regime.
One of the most senior figures to defect from President Bashar Assad's government called the regime "an enemy of God". Former Prime Minister Riad Hijab said the government is losing its grip on the country and is collapsing. ITV's John Ray reports.
In response, the relatives of the Lebanese men kidnapped in Syria carried out their own wave of kidnappings by taking as many as 23 Syrians who were inside Lebanon.
Syria diversion: Passengers asked for fuel money
The reprisal abductions suggest that the conflict is becoming a regional, rather than a purely Syrian, one.
As the fighting continues, more deadly clashes, kidnappings and the exchange of bitter accusations among the external proxy supporters and opponents inside Lebanon appear likely.
Collision course
The Syrian conflict has turned into a quagmire that goes beyond its borders, locking countries into a collision course over their stances on the Syrian divide.
Syrian warplanes rained terror on the rebel held town of Azaz. Bombs left more than thirty people dead. NBC's Ayman Mohyeldin reports.
Wealthy Gulf states such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates are behind the Syrian opposition. So, too, is Turkey, which shelters the Free Syrian Army.
Syrian regime near collapse, ex-PM says
But the internationalization of Syria’s conflict has spread far beyond the immediate region.
The United States has announced its plan to equip the rebels with communications equipment and other valuable intelligence.
Washington has accused Iran of providing material and financial support to the embattled regime.
Russia has provided the Syrian regime with arms and military hardware since the conflict began. Moscow, which has had a de facto alliance with Syria for decades, has also blocked several U.N. Security Council efforts to sanction the Assad regime.
Libyan fighters join Syrian revolt, Irish-born militant says
With action stymied in the Security Council, action against Assad shifted to the General Assembly, where members voted earlier this month on an Arab-backed resolution harshly condemning Syrian regime. The vote -- 133-12 in favor of the resolution, with 33 countries abstaining -- underscored the relative isolation of the Assad regime.
Central piece?
Depending on whom you ask -- supporters or opponents of the Assad regime -- Syria can be seen as a central piece to a larger conflict in the Middle East.
The Morning Joe panel discusses the the latest in Syria.
Dislodging Assad’s regime would mean a significant blow to the regional alliance between Syria, Iran and the Hezbollah Shiite militia group, which constitutes a powerful anti-U.S., anti-Israel power bloc.
Others argue that removing Assad would be one more victory for budding democracies in the wake of the Arab revolutions across the region.
Complete World news coverage from NBCNews.com
In addition, the Syrian military has shot down a Turkish fighter jet, shelled the Lebanese border and has had almost daily running gunfights with the Jordanian army. Its border with Iraq was shut down, and crossing terminals with Turkey have fallen into the hands of the rebels.
Some have warned that as the conflict in Syria drags on, its problems will spill over into neighboring countries and the region. But when one takes a step back and looks at the big picture, it is easy to see why young Syrians and many others say it has already done so.
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"A Syrian refugee complains Thursday over the management of the Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan during a visit by French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius."
This caption says it all.
Jordan is trying to save Syrian lives and the Syrians complain about how the Jordanians are going about the task.
Jerry, it's all a game. Some communiities in the world, even in this country, use the "We are vitcims" strategy all of the time. Instead of losing your life in a refugee camp and complaining about, go back to Syria and do something. Even if it costs you your life, it's better than bitching and moaning and dying in a refugee camp.
this reporter Aiman is a propaganda spreader , he use to report from cairo about what's happening in syria and he always quote the rebels ,just like Richard Alaqiada Engel , these reporters are not embedded withe these thugs , i think they are part of these thugs , and they are promoting these thugs as the innocent rebels that all what they want is their freedom , hey aiman !!! could you show us some of these beheaded innocent people and some of these people being throwing down from roof tops , and then dismantled with knives , these are your freedom fighters , and why don't you interview just one christian in Syria , you are nothing but a muslim extremists yourself , your name and your looks tells it , i wonder how much the S audis and Qataris paying you all for all the fabricated stories , you all are a shame for honest news , 65000 refugees , show the women and children's in Turkey , and how the women getting raped and forced to work as prostitutes , after the iraqi war syria took in a million Iraqi refugees , a fing million , where was Hillary and McCain and lieberman , Graham and Mr. Obama , syria never complained to anybody , they housed these refugees , why don't interview some of them and see how they were treated , enough lies , syria lost enough civilians and the country getting destroyed by these thugs , shame on the un , NATO and all these parties involved .
this reporter Aiman is unbaised in his reporting and the true facts are that it is you that is a propaganda spreader on behalf of a mass murdering dictator who tortures and kills anyone that opposes him. Assad has prompted up many torture chambers throughout the country for those (even children) that protest for freedom and support the arab spring movement. myway- YOU are the propaganda spreader on behalf of a hitler like dictator killing tens of thousands, thinking only of himself
John M I keep telling you are nothing but an Israeli's supporter that want Assad out knowing that he is the only decent leader in that region and the only one that allows Christians to live in peace and practice their religion unlike your Alqaida lovers and Hillary's and McCain and half of your honorable senators , the Saudis and Qataris and all these no good Gulf states and even your beloved Israel the ones that trying to tear down the church in Jerusalem so they can build the temple of David so Jesus can come back as they claim , so do not give me none pf your crap John I listen to your nonsense enough , go to Syria and join these rebels , I am going to see how long you will last before they behead you and throw of building tops , and I do not know where you got these torture chambers and even for kids , Is that the same chambers that Saddam had during before the Iraqi war next to his WMD'S storage areas , but this propaganda needs to stop , too many innocent people dying , While Mrs. Clinton dancing around in Africa and going crazy to find a safe zone for these Alqaida thugs , I wish her and these Senators that going to Turkey , Lebanon , and Jordan trying to help these murderers try to find jobs for the American people instead , One day we are going to wake up and get rid of all these no good politicians , I just hope we do it before its too late .
Actually, Israel does not want to get rid of Assad, they just want Syrians to keep fighting each other, so they would not have time to bother Israel.
If the violence spills into Lebanon, even better. May be Lebanese will finally rise up get rid of Hezbollah, or at least keep it busy for a while.
The best part is, all the trouble in Syria and Lebanon will take away Iran's best means of attacking Israel, so things can not possibly be better.
This is best for USA too, no need to get involved, just stay back and watch the puppets dance.
Myturn, I couldn't have said it any better. Ayman Mohyeldin is a shill. He is extremely biased and has never been fair and balanced. That's why I always look to see who wrote or contributed to these msnbc/nbc articles. When I see his name, I factor out 40% as being untrue propaganda.
>John M I keep telling you are nothing but an Israeli's supporter<
Being called an 'Israel Supporter' is one heck of a compliment in my book!
I read about Syria and I am at a loss. I truly don't know what should be done. I do not - absolutely do not want the United States to send troops there.
And yet I also feel Assad can not remain - if for no other reason than his rule has been poisoned. I wish he would have left voluntarily.
I wish the opposition was unified and had a central strong leadership that knew specifically what they wanted - not just Assad gone and in with freedom. That never pans out into something concrete.
No matter what happens in the end there will be more thuggery from everyone and more bloodshed by everyone - that's how uprisings everywhere have worked time immemorial.
What does the regional leadership want done - not just that the international community should send money and troops. What plan of action do they want? With the region in the lead?
I don't feel that anyone is sure of what they want and that is what I would like to hear first.
Katheryn - "No matter what happens in the end there will be more thuggery from everyone and more bloodshed by everyone - that's how uprisings everywhere have worked time immemorial."
Not true! The uprisings by American colonists led to the revolution and the forming of the United States, the uprisings by French peasants led to their revolution and the Country they have today and more resently the demonstrations in East Germany led to the fall of the Berlin wall.
You may be correct about Syria (Egypt hasn't yet been everything those people hoped for) but countless uprisings throughout history have in-fact changed lives for the better!
But the French Revolution certainly could not be called bloodless. The Russian Revolution was certainly not bloodless. The Islamic Revolution and the Iranian coup were both bloody and confusing. The Reunification of Germany was not an uprising. The United States was a rare instance where you really had the same people assuming power under the new flag plus they had already written up their specific desires of how they wanted the new government to work before they had the Revolution. Most uprisings revolt and then the strongest gets to take over.
I am not saying uprisings are not good eventually. I'm just saying they are always confusing and end up being a bloody free for all until the strongest power can take over and suppress the opposition.
Why do they call them The Free Syrian Army. How about the free alqaida terrorists army. What a joke these journalists have become. LOL
Pssst, NBC. Yeah you. You know know we have this thing called a President, I know that you forget that part, but I thought I just remind you that he hasn't given a real press conference in months. Do you think maybe, just maybe, you might ask him what the plan is? I mean it's not like Israel is getting ready for war with Iran (big Syria fans btw), or the Muslim Brotherhood Leader of Egypt fired his top generals, or Lebanon is now getting sucked into it, or that all of the above is on Israel's border. I would never want to suggest that sense of urgency. But do you think in between your obsession about tax returns that you might find a minute to interview the President?
Shirley, you jest?
The president is coming here to Vegas (again) next week.
He is too busy studying "Blackjack for Dummies" to be giving press conferences.
NotaBarryFan
I do not care what some of you people
think....this has nothing to do with us, and whatever the outcome will have
little effect on us, so why even waste time asking the president what the plan
is? Heck.......we might have started this as a diversion. Who the hell cares
what they do in Syria, did you care last year? Did you give a @!$%# what was
going on there last year? No.......you were all too transfixed on Gadhafi,
Chavez and Mubarak, next year it will be the Ayatollah and Sum Ful Kim in Korea.....none of which can actually do
any real harm to us. Keep every freakin cent here in the USA, spend it
here.....on the infrastructure, create jobs and make this damn country better,
but noooooo.......they have you all chasing ghost with sticks ond stones to
bounce off of our glass makers.
Meanwhile
the ME burns......is this not the point? Is this not what Bush started? Take it
over there and there will be no over here? Let it all burn, let them burn it
them damn selves.......spend every cent here, on the infrastructure which will
improve the economy the fastest and create a better America for our
children.....let the ME burn, and when they get too out of control, let us help
them burn at a higher temperature.
I do not give a @!$%# about the ME, heck......I do not give a @!$%# about Canada or Mexico for that matter......Take care of bussines here first!
It is the beginning of the 30 years war in the middle east. an unholy struggle between proxy rivals who are unwilling to engage one another in full, and so they will choose Syria as their battle ground. Russia and the US are blamed, but it is not they who started the uncompromising stances. The experience in Afghanistan has soured the US in terms of supplying arms for the rebels.
Where is Zenobia when you need her most? perhaps an injection of feminine authority will quell the belligerents.
The President have OK ed the raising of money for the Syrian rebels , Wow and nobody in the Senate or the house even rejected the idea , I just want to know , How strong these Saudis and Qataris lobbies in this country ???? we are funding Alqaida and our government is allowing it , every Intel. in this country and lots of reports showing that Alqaida are in Syria and responsible for all these murders and our politicians and media have decided to close their eyes and blame Assad for everything , Its a shame that we stooped down to this level .
Twenty first Century awareness will end the dispute between Sunni and Shiite; they both will agree that it is impossible for a sky god named Allah to exist. Only the Goddess Lady Luck will be worshipped; her presence is always felt. Mosques and other houses of worship can be converted into casinos; horny men will get a complimentary room with a naked lady called Luck, lonely women get her pimp.
If the Assad regime goes down Hezbollah and Iran will almost certainly attack Israel. In addition the "rebels" in Syria are deeply infiltrated by Al Qaeda so that will make Syria another anti-American stronghold like Egypt and Libya. How in the world any of this could possibly help America is frankly beyond my comprehension. I don't think we should help the "rebels" at all and we really should consider helping Assad. He's at least the devil we know and maybe we can gain a little leverage to temper his support for Hezbollah.
I think the Obama administration and the U.S. State Department are in way over their heads and the potential consequences are very scary.
There will be no good outcome for the US in this. The rebels win, and we are likely to see more terrorists in that area. Assad wins and he will tighten grip on power and run straight into Russia's arms for good. Heck, I did not even mention the probability of Mass purges of all types of people in Syria by Assad just so he can try and root out any more future problems.
The US dose actually benefit short term from all this. Iran is stretching its self thin with propping up Assad, while they themselves are under sanctions. This in turn could put the squeeze on Lebanon based terrorists organizations money supply.
In fact, I would not be to surprised if the US egged this on. Sure, if Assad is toppled, they will have to deal with terrorists in Syria, but if the US plays its cards just right they can squeeze Iran and the Terrorists in Lebanon at the same time and get rid of a major threat to Israel. After that, the US could turn around and wipe the floor with Underfunded and weakened remnant of Terrorists in Syria.
Then again, this all assumes a lot, but there are some potential silver linings here for the US.
**TO BE POSTED SOON ON YOUTUBE & HAND DELIVERED TO THE RUSSIAN CONSULATE IN MONTREAL EARLY NEXT WEEK!!
Dear President Al-Assad:
It has been over 6 months since I first wrote to you, but you still continue to kill your fellow Syrians.
This time you are using tanks, airplanes and artillery to injure, maim and kill innocent people and obliterate buildings of Syria’s largest cities.
FOR WHAT REASON??
The Syrian people just want basic things in life:
• To live in Peace
• To live without Fear
• To be able to express their opinions and feelings
There are now:
• Over 20,000 dead
• Over 150,000 refugees who have left Syria
• Over 1,000,000 displaced citizens
WHY DO YOU KEEP DOING THIS TO YOUR OWN PEOPLE??
Look around, people who were once with you are leaving you because they know eventually you will lose and have to leave.
Leave NOW before more Syrians suffer needlessly due to your actions.
Sincerely,
Jack
Citizen of the World
ATTENTION ALL MEMBERS OF CONGRESS AND THE WHITEHOUSE ADMIN:
Stay out of this one! Just take a pass! Nothing good can come of it, and we don't need to lose one more troop for these warring religious factions, not one more drop of American blood spilled.
PLEASE!
Said human rights activist, "Izzat Ibrahim Ezzat," branch manager Word Center for Human Rights and queens, the Copts City "wrench" mobbed, Friday, in front of the police station, "wrench", an objection to infect thugs on them, and the seizure of their homes and their shops and warehouses and lands. The number of thugs have done yesterday seized the store owned rebar "The beauty of a symbolic", and a house owned by a "fair Massoud," and breaking and looting the homes of some Copts to "wrench", and the launch of gunshot wounds to intimidate. Continued gathered in front of the police station Copts from five o'clock pm until one in the morning, demanding security quickly move to protect the Copts, and the arrest of thugs. He explained, "Izzat" he phoned the Governor "Minya", who promised to escalate the topic to the Interior Minister, and ordered security leaders to maintain numbers ambush to catch the thugs and the protection of parents.
wake up people that what happened in Egypt after Muslim brotherhood took egypt, every day killing stealing take money with weapons from Christians and any one against Muslim brotherhood, how USA support an evil call Muslim brother hood, i am asking every Christian do not vote for obama
Why does MSNBC continually pretend as though "activists" are a reliable source of information regarding Syria? If this were an article about handguns would the NRA be an authoritative source? If I wanted to know more about cigarette smoke would anti-tobacco acitvists provide an unbiased perspective?
Wake up MSNBC. Activists are not normal people. They're people with an inordinate amount of free time which they have to spend devoting to "causes" that usually have nothing to do with them personally. They don't live in these countries, they don't speak Arabic, they don't know whats going on. They're people without real goals in life who are forced into latching onto a cause in order to have some sense of purpose in life.
These activists ignore that this is clearly a sectarian war, not a political one. They ignore that the Alawites were brutalized and oppressed for centuries by the antecedents of the people staging an uprising right now. They ignore that the Christian and Druze communities (almost 30% of the population) want absolutely NOTHING to do with these "Free Syria" people. They ignore that - by all accounts - there's a strong Islamist element (as there always is) in this insurgency. They ignore the obvious connections that the Sunni insurgency in Syria has with the Sunni insurgency in Iraq and the implications this holds for the entire region. One could go on...
Lets not allow the jaded perspective of these crazed, attention-starved activists to obscure the fact that this is a very difficult situation that probably doesn't have a "good" or a "bad" side...
Street criminals are becoming empowered by a magical chant as they commit their crimes. Rapists, muggers, and murderers are shouting ALLAHU AKBAR as they bloody their victims. Those that hear those magical words must reach for their weapons or flee for their lives.