Syria

'War-war when jaw-jaw fails?', On Line Opinion, 18 May 2012.

by Benjamin Herscovitch

Dilemmas of Security: Security-Democracy and Security-Stability Dilemmas in the Cases of Syria and Afghanistan

by sule toktas

The Iraqi Refugee Crisis-Obstacles for Voluntary Repatriation: The Case of Syria

by Florian Egloff

America: An Empire In Decline (Part 3)

by Devon DB

Current foreign policy under the Obama administration is examined (from the Cheonan incident to the Arab Spring) and... more Current foreign policy under the Obama administration is examined (from the Cheonan incident to the Arab Spring) and there is a brief examination of what may lay in store for America's future.

MONDE ARABE-LE RETOUR DU LOCAL

by Fabrice Balanche

جغرافيا الثورة السورية

by Fabrice Balanche

Arabic translation of "Géographie de la révolte syrienne" published by "Outre Terre", n°29, october 2011.

In March 2011, Syria was also affected by the protest movement which was already down the Tunisian and Egyptian... more In March 2011, Syria was also affected by the protest movement which was already down the Tunisian and Egyptian presidents. There are two similarities between the different places that defy the regime of Bashar al-Assad. First, it's peripheral areas on the political and / or economic scales: the neglected provinces in the transition from socialist to market economy, small cities, and finally neighborhoods. The second common point is that this revolt does in Sunni Arab territories. The Kurds, Sunnis, too, manifested in their territories but their engagement is not commensurate with that of the revolt of 2004. As for religious minorities: Druze, Ismailis, Alawites and Christians, they are passive or support Bashar al-Assad.

Damascus under the Baath (in French)

by Fabrice Balanche

Publisheb in Moyen Orient, n°12, April 2012

À la différence du Caire et de Tunis, les manifestants antirégime n’ont pas encore occupé les grandes places de Damas.... more À la différence du Caire et de Tunis, les manifestants antirégime n’ont pas encore occupé les grandes places de Damas. Si le président Bachar al-Assad nie toute contagion du « printemps arabe » à la Syrie, les chars ont été envoyés dès avril 2011 dans la périphérie de la capitale. En janvier et février 2012, des quartiers intra-muros connaissent également des rassemblements. Le régime a réussi à conserver le centre de la ville et a empêché un embrasement général. Un tel scénario lui serait fatal, car Damas est la clé de voûte du système politique construit par Hafez al-Assad (1970-2000), un cas d’école pour analyser les relations entre l’espace urbain et le pouvoir.

Implantation des entreprises françaises en Syrie

by celine thooris

The Past Decade in Syria: The Dialectic of Stagnation and Reform

by Abed Ayyad

Discussion of the socioeconomic transformations within Syria which are driving the present unrest and disenchantment within the country.

Since February 2011, protests and demonstrations have erupted in Syria, some of them organized by young activists who... more Since February 2011, protests and demonstrations have erupted in Syria, some of them organized by young activists who have used various tools, such as local contacts or social media networks, while others were spontaneous rallies. These events have taken place in small towns of about 100,000 inhabitants and in some large urban centers in both coastal and inland areas, while the largest cities, those with more than 1 million inhabitants, have remained untouched by the unrest.

The most violent episodes have taken place in peripheral cities, such as Deraa, then Douma, which suffer primarily, especially Deraa and the cities in Rif Dimashq, from multidimensional marginalization, oppression by local authorities, and repression by an arbitrary central government, with limited benefits from economic growth. These cities suffer low human development indicators, high rates of unemployment and poverty, and high age-dependency.

However, the common feature that these protests share with Damascus youth movements is that the people involved are in the 15-24 age group, or the extended 15-35 age group, who are the most vulnerable groups and take initiatives more than any other. These groups suffer the highest unemployment rates, and include new youth groups which interact with "the winds of revolution" sweeping other Arab countries.

Michel Ecochard in Lebanon and Syria (1956–1968). The spread of Modernism, the building of the independent states and the rise of local professionals of planning

by eric verdeil

Planning Perspectives, Volume 27, Issue 2, 2012, 249-266

The architect and planner Michel Ecochard has had a long career in developing countries, from its first works in Syria... more The architect and planner Michel Ecochard has had a long career in developing countries, from its first works in Syria under the French rule, until the 1970s. He represented the modernist and functionalist approach to planning in a time of modernization. In this article, we concentrate on his work in Lebanon and Syria between the end of the 1950s and the 1960s. He prepared the master plans of Beirut and of Damascus. Those works represented the end of an era rooted in colonial planning. It was also the beginning of a new time, with the local planners taking on, sometimes sharing, sometimes contesting Ecochard's visions. Building on recent scholarship on the circulation of planning ideas, we focus on the reception of Ecochard's proposals. Though most political elites and planning professionals shared most of Ecochard's views, the political circumstances and the changing social conditions led to adjustments and reorientations. The new planning framework was also a major factor of change.

Der biblische Ortsname Zaphon und die Amarnabriefe EA 273-274

by Juan-Pablo Vita

Ugarit-Forschungen 37 (2005), 673-677.

Warfare and the Army at Emar

by Juan-Pablo Vita

Altorientalische Forschungen 29 (2002), 113-127.

Middle East Policy: Why the Assad Regime is Likely to Survive to 2013

by Joshua Landis

Middle East Policy journal - Spring 2012, Volume XIX, Number 1

Landis examines the Syrian uprising of 2011 and predicts Assad's regime's prolonged survival despite its growing... more Landis examines the Syrian uprising of 2011 and predicts Assad's regime's prolonged survival despite its growing isolation and struggling economy.

One cannot envision the Asad family retaining power in the long run; all the same, predictions of its rapid demise may be wishful thinking.

Four elements are important in assessing the regime's chances of surviving to 2013: its own strengths, the opposition's weaknesses, the chances of foreign intervention, and the impact of sanctions and economic decline.

Syrian horrors set to plunge new depths

by Victor Kotsev

Published in Asia Times Online

There is every indication that the cynicism with which both the regime and most of the foreign-backed rebels disregard... more There is every indication that the cynicism with which both the regime and most of the foreign-backed rebels disregard the suffering of the Syrian people is a cover for their own moral degradation and desperation. Unfortunately, it is still impossible to either verify or dismiss reports of a large-scale massacre in the Syrian city of Homs, where the government forces conducted a crushing offensive, pushing the Free Syrian Army out of the Bab Amro neighborhood Wednesday night.

Land reform and social classes in rural Syria

by Sulayman Khalaf

1991. Syria: The society, polity, and culture of a modern nation (SUNY University Press, Albany NY), edited by R. Antoun and D. Quataert, pp. 63-78.

Family, Village and the Political Party: Articulation of Social Change in Contemporary Rural Syria

by Sulayman Khalaf

1981. Abstract - Doctor in Philosophy in Anthropology, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

Tribal Politics and Leadership in the Raqqa region of North-East Syria

by Sulayman Khalaf

1975. Sulayman Khalaf, M.A. thesis, introduction chapter.

Shaykhs, peasants and party comrades: political change in northern Syria

by Sulayman Khalaf

2000. In: Martha Mundy and Basim Musallam (eds.), The Transformation of Nomadic Society in the Arab East, Cambridge University Press, pp.110-122.

Interview in Tishreen newspaper, Syria.

by Sulayman Khalaf

2008 (20 August) - Interview in Tishreen newspaper, Syria.

Interview with the Syria Post News

by Sulayman Khalaf

2010 (September) - Interview in the Syria Post.