The Islamic civil war inside Syria

Washington Times:
Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag said on Sunday that Hezbollah, or “Party of God” in Arabic, should change its name to “Party of Satan,” blaming the terrorist organization for killing thousands of civilians in Syria.

“Those who stand by the Assad regime and kill their own Muslim brothers and indiscriminately kill women and children in the battlefield should not appeal to Islam and the Quran to legitimize their actions,” Bozdag said, according to Turkish newspaper Today’s Zaman.

Bozdag made the remarks on Sunday at an international symposium in Ankara, titled “Problems of the Islamic World and Solutions,” Today’s Zaman reports. The deputy prime minister also said Hezbollah, which has bolstered support behind Assad’s regime, should change its name to Hezb al-Shaitan — the Party of Satan.

“The pharaoh gave orders for the killing of innocent children and their mothers to maintain power. What is the difference between what the Pharaoh did and Assad is doing?” he asked.

...
At its heart this war in Syria has always been an Islamic civil war with Sunnis on one side and Shia entities supporting the Alawite Assad regime.   As much as the war is an existential struggle for Assad and his followers, it is also the same for Hezballah which exist as an Iranian proxy force against Israel.

The US should seized the opportunity to destroy Hezballah, but Obama may have waited too long.  The war has devolved into a battle between al Qaeda on one side and Hezballah on the other.  Under those circumstances the best outcome is for both to lose.  How to make that happen appears to be a challenge beyond the capability of the US and its allies.

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