Syria: A Failed State

            Over the past three years, the civil war in Syria has dominated the scope of international relations.  As the middle east is continually effected by conflicts, the Syrian civil war has stood out as being the most deadly, garnering the attention of powers in the region such as Saudi Arabia and Iran, as well as the attention of the entire world. More recently the emergence of ISIS, as the major opponent of the Assad Regime and a power in the area, compiling physical territory in Northern Iraq and Eastern Syria, has clouded the Syrian Debate, further complicating a conflict that remains not fully understood.  However, by just analyzing the Syrian state itself in terms of its success and rank on the failed states index similar to the one published online by Foreign Policy Magazine, I believe Syria should fall near the very top of the list.

            Syria is a failed state. One could even argue that Syria before the civil war that began nearly three years ago was an example of a failed state, for the non democratically elected, dictatorship of Assad was in power controlling the Syrian people through domination and coercion. Syria relied upon its relationship to countries like Iran and Russia to supply it with arms and other resources. During the Civil War, Syria has become even more reliant on its allies, further isolating itself from western powers over its usage of chemical weapons, as it continues to attempt to survive this civil war.  When the civil war broke out, protesting and civil unrest quickly morphed into terrible violence.  Failing to meet the needs and aspirations of the citizens of Syria, the Syrian government failed in its primary purpose to provide for its citizens. Although the role of a state may differ in the opinions of analyst. In my opinion if a government is unable to respond to the will of the populace without violence, and has allowed social/political/economic conflicts within the nation to turn violent or unruly it has failed in its primary mission. As Syria struggles to emerge from this ordeal, the question must be asked what or who is Syria? The government I deemed illegitimate that slaughters the inhabitants of the nation of Syria, I would argue is not Syria, ISIS fighter are not Syria, only its natural inhabitants should be seen as Syria, and as they leave in the millions, and are murdered in the thousands, the state of Syria is not just a failure it  may no longer exist.

            Political corruption, economic stability, crime levels, normal factors in determining the level of instability (failure) with a nation, are no longer prevalent in Syria. The level of failure has reached the point that civilian death seems to be the only statistic coming out of Syria. As foreign policy magazine goes to reassess the current state of the world's nation, Syria should be near the very top. Normal factors of analysis, no longer prevalent in Syria should not cloud the formalization of Syria's score. Just as the United States failed to hold together the union in the mid 19th century, the American Civil War was a result of political/cultural failure within the nation's borders. Today in Syria the level of  violence, tragedy, and uncounterable foreign involvement further exemplifies the level of failure for the "government."