The situation in Syria daily
goes from bad to worse. It’s clear that
the position is a good deal more complicated than sometimes appears to be the
case, with an opposition which is far from being a single united or easily
categorised grouping. Nor are all of
those who are part of the opposition forces any more enlightened in their
approach to human rights and the lives of civilians than the supporters of the
existing regime.
Faced with such a
tragedy, I think that the UK
government has been absolutely right in offering and providing humanitarian aid
to those affected by the conflict.
Indeed I cannot think of any circumstances in which it would not be
right for a government to provide humanitarian aid to people who are suffering.
I’m a good deal
less certain about the other types of assistance which the UK and other
Western governments have been providing, such as intelligence information. It’s been rather euphemistically described as
‘non-lethal’ assistance.
It leaves me
feeling more than a little uneasy. There
is a serious danger that Western governments are effectively providing enough
aid and assistance to keep the conflict running, but not enough to give the
opposition a decisive advantage. The net
result could be an extension of the conflict and an increase in the numbers
suffering as a result. And it’s being
done in our name.
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