"... That is not to say that anyone really knows what kind of state the protesters want. In Homs last week, pious activists debated the differences between an Islamic and civil state, both of which they said should rely on religious law. Minorities fear militant currents within the Sunni Muslim majority. Sunnis seethe at the injustice of living for decades under a state endowed with a remarkable capacity for violence and led by the Alawite minority, a heterodox Muslim sect. Even some activists celebrating the unity that the revolt has brought warn that repression is breeding strife...
Many in Homs and Hama feel anger at what they see as American, European and Turkish acquiescence to Mr. Assad staying in power. They often express resentment at Aleppo, Syria’s second-largest city, which has remained relatively quiet...
Perhaps most pronounced is the anger at Hezbollah, the Shiite Muslim militant movement in Lebanon that has bluntly supported Mr. Assad’s government. Hezbollah was widely popular in Syria, where sentiments against Israel and longstanding American dominance of the region run deep. But Hezbollah’s backing for Mr. Assad has unleashed a sense of betrayal at a movement that celebrates the idea of resistance. At times, it has also given rise to chauvinism among Syrian Sunnis against Hezbollah’s Shiite constituency.
“We’ve started to hate them more than we hate Israel,” said Maher, a young father and protester in Hama, sitting with a friend who gave his name as Abu Mohammed..."
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
"We’ve started to hate them more than we hate Israel ..."
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2 comments:
All this sectarian-based talk really doesn't apply to Syrian society as much as it does in Lebanese society. It does exist, but it's kept private by most, much like racism in the West. I'm ashamed to say that many more Syrians that I thought actually watch channels like Safa and Wisal, that advocate killing anything non-Sunni, with special emphasis on Alawites and Shiites before even Jews. But the only good articles about Syria today are the ones that keep sectarian discussion to a minimum. After all, Aleppo and Damascus, with about 5 million people each, are the Sunni base of Syria and no security forces, or army, or "shabbiha" can stop such numbers if they wanted to protest. Emphasis on sectarianism tells you the author doesn't know what he/she is talking about.
Hizbullah did not betray the Syrian people as every day it is proven that the majority of us Syrians are "anti-revolution" seeing the daily pro-Asad demonstrations that are always ignored by Western and Arab media. Anyone who thought Hizbullah was ever "neutral" or "anti-Asad" was confused to begin with. If they think Nasrallah was able to sway anti-Asad people into pro-Asad with his words, then they are still confused now. I watched some of the protest videos in Hama that have chanting, and one of the lines calls Bashar an "American agent." Clearly these guys are confused and frustrated that they can't build up hate towards Bashar, as a figure, like Egyptians were able to (easily) against Mubarak. If anyone says now that they've "started to hate [Hizbullah] more than [they] hate Israel," then let's be logical: They never liked Hizbullah to begin with. People don't turn from widely pro-resistance to anti-resistance-more-than-anti-Israel from just one or two speeches. At no point did Nasrallah, nor Bashar, deny the presence of legitimate demands and the need to meet those demands.
Also, the article mentions a person by the name of "Abu Mohammed" which is coincidentally the same name as one of al-Jazeera's infamous "eyewitnesses" who can see all Syrian cities simultaneously. He provided us with quality material such as "half a million people in Hama" when Assi square, and its surrounding streets, where all the protesters massed, cannot physically accommodate more than 100,000 people (look it up on Google maps). Also the "half million" in Deir ez-Zor is even more ridiculous because Al-Basil square (where they gathered) is even smaller.
Well said 'Anonymous'. I am amazed at the blindness of Western reporting who seem more interested on finding facts 'supporting' their own biases and prejudices than facts describing reality. The take on Hizbullah is ridiculous and the anti-Hezbollah rants are done by people who were from the beginning anti-Hezbollah. The massive pro-Assad demonstrations and ignored by Western media show the blindness and biased take. Wishful thinking is no substitute to sober analysis. Schenkeritis is a contagious disease that unfortunately cannot be eradicated for how do you eradicate stupidity?
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