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UN
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The Peace That Was Never Peace
The era of Pax Americana was marked by the exportation of wars. Concern about a world descending into chaos with the decline of Pax Americana is indicative of a Western-centric perspective.
The Regime Shirks Its Responsibilities
Introduction The debate over unilateral sanctions on Syria, imposed in response to the regime’s atrocities, has dominated the discourse in a myriad of international and regional fora. Actors from civil society, the aid community, multilateral institutions and beyond have debated the impact of sanctions on Syria and, concomitantly, their legitimacy. What is conspicuously lacking from these debates is a more realistic discussion of the measures…
Border-shaking earthquake response
The earthquake that struck southern Turkey and northern Syria at dawn on February 6, 2023, did not, naturally, take into account the dynamics of the conflict within the borders of Syria. Nor did it care that Syrians in Turkey needed a permit to visit their country, or that the Turkish gendarmerie were killing Syrians as they tried to cross the border. Naturally, the earthquake did…
State of starvation
The famine looming today in Syria is caused not by a lack of food, but by policies consciously adopted by the Assad regime for many years, argues Yassin al-Haj Saleh.
How the UN failed to save Syria’s hospitals
A Syrian doctor says the UN’s plan to stop attacks on hospitals in Syria has failed. If it can’t be fixed, it should be abandoned.
Nothing special
The departing UN special envoy to Syria was not merely feckless or naïve about the Assad regime; he was an active facilitator of its survival strategy.
Open letter: If the UN can’t stop Assad’s crimes, it needs to change
In an open letter to the United Nations, over 100 prominent writers, academics, and activists say the time has come to consider radical reform of the U.N. Security Council, given its abject failure to protect Syrians from the Bashar al-Assad regime’s mass violence.
The humane mobility manifesto: A response
A recent manifesto signed by academics and activists called for a “reimagining of migration” in response to the new UN Migration Compact. Kester Ratcliff proposes further concrete steps toward a more humane—and sustainable—approach by the international community.
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