The Faux Dialogue in Syria

Hanin Ghaddar makes the inevitable comparison:

Let’s imagine that the Israeli army were bombing Lebanon and Syria, killing thousands of innocent civilians and torturing many more. Let’s imagine Israeli troops entering Lebanon and Syria and arresting unarmed young men and children, torturing them for days and killing most of them.

And then let’s imagine the Israeli government, in the middle of all this, calling on Lebanese and Syrian activists, civil society groups and communities for dialogue.

As veteran Syria-watcher Gary Gambill put it: “The Syrian president isn’t trying to negotiate with his opponents — he’s trying to divide and defeat them.”