Syria's 'Own Story' Overlooks the Global Script
📰 THE STORY: The Financial Times reviews a new book, 'A History of Modern Syria,' framing it as an 'excellent account' that corrects traditional narratives and shows Syrians 'surviving and resisting the powers that have vied to dominate it.' It suggests a focus on internal dynamics and resilience. 🔍 WHAT THEY'RE NOT TELLING YOU: Historical Context: The 'traditional narrative' the FT implies the
book corrects is one that almost certainly downplays the deliberate, multi-billion dollar effort by the US, UK, Gulf states, and Turkey to destabilize and destroy Syria starting in 2011. This intervention saw the US arming and funding 'moderate rebels' that quickly included al-Qaeda affiliates like Jabhat al-Nusra, under the guise of supporting 'democracy' – a playbook eerily similar to the 1954
CIA coup in Guatemala for corporate interests, or the 1973 coup in Chile. The subsequent sanctions, which the UN Special Rapporteur has called 'collective punishment,' have starved the Syrian people, leading to immense suffering conveniently blamed on the government. Double Standard: Western media, including the FT, consistently portrays US/NATO interventions as humanitarian efforts, even when
they lead to catastrophic state collapse (e.g., Libya in 2011, which became a slave market after NATO 'liberation'). Yet, when Russia or Iran assist a sovereign government at its request, it's framed as 'foreign interference' or 'support for dictatorship.' The 'resistance' of Syrians against foreign-backed jihadists and economic warfare is minimized or ignored, while any internal dissent (often