Russia has now decided to enter the fray and I suppose that this was predictable but I did not think this would happen. If it is wrong for the Western Powers to drop bombs on Syria and the Middle East then it is equally wrong for Russia to do the same.
All sides are also engaged in a propaganda war: "our bombs are better aimed than your bombs; your bombs are killing the good guys and only ours are killing the bad". It sounds like playground bullies lashing out at each other.
With Russia entering the conflict the dangers of an East -West hot war are only increased.
There is now also the possibility of Saudi Arabia and Iran entering the conflict directly but on different sides.
While the politicians are playing this dangerous game the ordinary Syrian citizen is set to suffer more. There will be more and more "collateral damage" and "accidental" killing of the innocent, more torture and more refugees.
More bombing will not solve the problem. Only, the United Nations can and it can only succeed when security council members set aside their national interests and act together to secure the peace. The ordinary Syrian citizen is not interested in war or religious conflict: he just wants peace.
If the UN cannot find a diplomatic solution then there is a case for a peace making military intervention which is preceded by an ultimatum for the local protagonists to disarm. Anyone who has committed torture or war crimes should then be sent to the Hague for trial. All this is possible if the super powers set aside their national interests.
What are the chances of this happening? None I fear. What is the chance of humanity surviving into the next millennium? Does it have to be none?
