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Erich Schmidt

Mr. Phillips

Research project

08 May 2017

Syrian Tactics Against ISIS

ISIS stands for Islamic state in Iraq and Syria. They are a terrorist group that has

been attacking innocent civilians for many years. Countries like Syria, have been

battling against them since they were first established in 1999. ISIS initially started in

Iraq and has slowly made their way into other countries such as Syria. Syria has been

suffering from this war since it has started. Syria is now approaching their seventh year

at war, and are running out of resources and territory to the extremist group. They are in

need of aid from first world countries such as United States of America. The Syrian

government is not strong enough to keep fighting the extremist group for multiple years.

The Syrian army has been sending troops to surrounding cities that have been

controlled by ISIS but, the Syrian president is using irrational behavior against the

citizens that live there to try and draw out the extremists.

ISIS has been capturing cities in Syria since the beginning of the war. But for a

change, Syria has been fighting back and has recaptured more than thirty cities. After

the attack on Aleppo, it was a changing factor on how the Syrian government wanted to

recapture the surrounding cities of Aleppo. A commander of the most elite group in the

military for Syria is fighting for a city called Deir al-Zour. It is in the middle of the Islamic
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State controlled territory. The commander is surrounded by the extremist with no

support coming, only him and his troops against hundreds of the enemy. Since Syria is

running out of resources, and this is their seventh year of war, they are becoming more

dependant on first world countries. With the support of these powerful countries it will

put some weight off of Syrias shoulders since they won't have to fight this war by

themselves. Syria does not have the advanced technologies to keep continually fight

against the extremist group. With a lack of the advanced technologies, it is hard for the

government to form a specific strategy against the Islamic State.

Syria does not have a specific strategy to battle against ISIS. Syria has tried to

use some basic strategies so simple that it has not worked. The government lacked a

long term vision while improvisation was a main trait they have carried out through the

war. The reason for Syria improvising is so that they can survive inside and outside their

borders. Improvisation is the main tactic of an opportunistic government that evolves

and adapts on the ground in Syria and world-wide. The former president of Syria used

the term waiting game when he talked about trying to defeat the Islamic State. The

reasoning behind this saying was because he was relying on his allies, such as the

United States of America to help defend him and his country. Another strategy the

former president used was called the long breath. This strategy is used to take a deep

breath and whether short term pain and setbacks. Hafez, the former president, wanted

a wide array of allies to compensate for the areas of weakness their army has. This

strategy is being reinstated by the current president. Essentially, Syria is going to lay

down in a cozy blanket of the long breath strategy.

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While the government of Syria believes they are fighting against the extremist,

they are actually killing innocent civilians that live in the same area which has ISIS

terrorist throughout the cities. The current president of Syria is using irrational behavior

against his own civilians which he is killing. He has tried to starve out the extremist

within an area to try and lead them out, but he really killed the civilians. The starvation

made the civilians eat grass to try and get some type of nutrients to stay alive.

Unfortunately, these people were encircled in a region where there was a high

concentration of Islamic terrorist where Assad thought he could get them to come out

cutting off all resources but it did not work. The Syrian government was essentially

trying to drain the sea to kill the fish. Assad thinks this strategy has been efficient

because if you can not get food to the city then they will starve, so they would not be

able to be fed. Assad has also used the use of barrel bombings throughout the country.

The United Nations Security Council has passed a law last year that banned the use of

barrel bombings, but Assad still uses them. Assad has killed 6, 000 innocent civilians

and of those 6,000, 1, 892 have been children. The Syrian Network for Human Rights

are concerned for the lives of the innocent people living inside of Syria. As should the

rest of the world be just as concerned. In a recent interview with , the use of barrel

bombs was brought up, and Assad denied of any knowledge of using barrel bombs

against his civilians. Assad said When you shoot, you aim. When you aim, you aim at

terrorist in order to protect civilians. Seeing the aftermath of the barrel bombs will

change your life according to survivors of this irrational behavior. It is gruesome and

very bloody and if the extremist see it, than there is a very small chance they would be
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able to fight against it. No one should see this or experience it in any way. Barrel bombs

are not only damaging physically, but also psychological too. Its terrorizing. Barrel

bombs are very effective in diminishing the interests of people in fighting. according to

Robin Wright.

The world needs a change in events to help defeat ISIS. Syria is hoping that

more first world countries will step in eventually and help defeat the extremist. Syria

should slowly take back one city at a time, and work their way back to gain control of

those they lost in this war. In January, 4.8 million people out of the 12 million Syrians

are in hard to reach places to where the European Commission on Humanitarian Aid

and Civil Protection can not get to them. It is unfortunate, because the extremist will not

allow the civilians receive any aid from anyone. They see everyone as a threat and will

not take any chances.

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New Reports Detail Assad's Brutal Tactics in Syria. PBS, Public Broadcasting

Service,www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/new-reports-detail-assads-brutal-tacti

cs-in-syria/. Accessed 25 Apr. 2017.

Sofrep. Syrian Military Engaged in Fierce Battle with ISIS for Deir Al-Zour. SOFREP,

19 Jan. 2017

sofrep.com/72727/syrian-military-engaged-fierce-battle-isis-deir-al-zour/.

Accessed 24 Apr. 2017.

Survival Is Syria's Strategy. The Century Foundation, 7 Mar. 2017,

tcf.org/content/report/survival-syrias-strategy/. Accessed 24 Apr. 2017.

Syrian Army Will Press on against ISIS near Allepo. English.alarabiya.net,

english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2017/02/02/Syrian-army-will-press-on-

against-ISIS-near-Aleppo.html. Accessed 21 Apr. 2017.