Before the “Free” Syrian army moved into Alepo, the city was one of the quietest parts of Syria and hardly touched by the uprising. So it is not hard to argue that for any reason (whether from fear, interest, confusion, or etc.) this city was not embracing the uprising. Hence, initially, the FSA imposed itself on this city and used its population to protect itself against the savagery of the Syrian army. So now the city and its people are victims of two ruthless armed groups that have no respect for people’s lives. This is why Amnesty International argues that “both sides fighting in Syria ‘s most populous city might be held criminally accountable for their failure to protect civilians.” And this is why I long ago lost my respect for most of the Syrian opposition, which sidelined independent opponents of the regime and sought the financial, military and political support of outside powers which pursue their own interest. In effect, they became tools in a proxy war between Iran ‘s mafia regime and its opponents like Saudi Arabia , Qatar and Turkey , and the western powers.
The real victims of such a great strategic blunder are the majority of the civilians. Furthermore, this blunder has turned the despot of Damascus into the supposed defender of Syria ‘s territorial integrity. From this perspective, he could not wish for a better enemy.
