For the past month conflict in Syria has been in the forefront of American minds, but where and how did it all start?
Unrest in Syria began in March 2011 with two major protests. The first, which is referred to as the “Day of Dignity”, demanded the release of political prisoners and the second the “Day of Rage”, where many civilians were shot dead by security forces. In May 2011, the government ended protests in major Syrian cities, which include Homs, Daraa and areas of Damascus. The government continued to enforce crackdown of protests, which led to the deaths of hundreds of civilians at the hands of the government. This event led to a response from President Obama who asked for the President of Syria, Bashar al-Assad, to step down.
In the coming months Syria was further sanctioned by other countries, resolutions were also brought up in the U.N. to bring a cease-fire in Syria, but these resolutions were continuously stopped by Russia and China which are allies to Syria.