SOUTHWEST & CENTRAL ASIA
This section tracks some of the armed conflicts in Southwest (the Middle East) and Central Asia. The following materials are selected from Chung’s ongoing tracking of the war and humanitarian crisis in Syria, which she have begun in 2012, with additional research on conflicts & humanitarian situations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The conflict in Syria began as civilian protests against the Assad’s regime in 2011 and soon erupted into a full-scale war between the Syrian government backed by Russia & Iran and anti-government rebel groups backed by the U.S., Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and others in the region. Syria was divided into different spheres of influence under competing external powers: Russia in the west with Iran & its proxies as covert influences, Turkey in the north, and the U.S. in the east, all with nuances and within the complex Syrian context. Charting the 12-year conflict in Syria thus requires unpacking “a complex interplay of military, political, and economic power between external actors,”[1] notably the U.S. military involvement and Russia’s military intervention beginning in 2015. Most of Chung’s artworks materialized from the decade-long research have largely focused on tracking the humanitarian aspect of the conflict and mapped the shifting areas of influence as the war escalated.
[1] What is Russia’s Endgame in Syria? (Mona Yacoubian), U.S. Institute of Peace
Syria Transition Challenges Project, (Christian Bühlmann, Alexandra Matas, Constance Dumont), Geneva Centre for Security Policy
Publications of multilateral dialogue & research project seeking to build common ground between the European, Russian, Turkish and U.S. views on issues of Reform, Refugees Return, and Reconstruction in Syria (3R).
In Photos: A Timeline of War in Syria Through the Eyes of Children, Save The Children
15 March 2023, brief timeline of Syrian nationwide protests descending into a deadly conflict, killing hundreds of thousands & displacing millions of children & families, with quotes by Syrian children.
Global Conflict Tracker: Crisis in Syria, Center for Preventive Action, Council on Foreign Relations
15 February 2023, brief overview on the crisis’ background, concerns, recent developments, and links to other resources on the conflict in Syria.
The Insurgency of ISIS in Syria, (TAIM AL-HAJJ), sada-Middle East Analysis, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
15 March 2022, analysis on the Islamic State (ISIS) morphing into a new model of non-spatial insurgency capable of conquering territorial boundaries, exemplified in a series of multi-pronged attacks in Syria and Iraq by insurgents affiliated with ISIS.
Salafi-Jihadi Movement Weekly Update, (Liam Karr, Kathryn Tyson, Peter Mills) Institute for the Study of War (ISW)
Blog with weekly updates & infographics on the movement of Salafi Jihadism in Africa and Southwest & Central Asia— a transnational, hybrid religious-political ideology based on Sunni Islam, aiming to establish a global Caliphate through military jihadist and Salafist concepts.
Iran is putting down roots in eastern Syria, outcompeting Assad’s regime in signing up fighters, (Sarah Dadouch), Washington Post
28 January 2022, article on the growing Iranian influence in strategic Deir al-Zour province aiming at projecting Tehran’s power across the region.
A Deal Is Still Possible in Syria But Washington Has to Stop Ignoring the Conflict, (James Jeffrey), Foreign Affairs
13 December 2021, analysis on U.S. decision to deprioritize the Syria conflict as opposed to the emerging opportunities to find a solution to the crisis & suggesting the U.S. seize these chances through diplomatic effort, with a realistic assessment of what can be achieved.
Troops to stay put in Syria even as Biden seeks to end America’s ‘forever wars’, (Lara Seligman), Politico
27 July 2021, article on approx. 900 U.S. troops remaining in Syria to prevent Russian-backed Syrian government from accessing oil fields in northeastern Syria & to obstruct Iran’s aim of establishing a geographic corridor connecting Tehran with Lebanon and the Mediterranean— while U.S. troops pulling out of Afghanistan and transitioning to an advisory role in Iraq.
Inside a U.S. Military Base in Syria, VOA
7 July 2021, article with video on the first U.S. military installation being constructed in 2014 near the oil-rich town of Rumeilan in northeast Syria, supporting Kurdish forces to fight against ISIS and currently fending off ISIS-affiliated militants.
What is Russia’s Endgame in Syria? (Mona Yacoubian), U.S. Institute of Peace
16 February 2021, analysis on Russia pursuing a ‘spheres of influence’ model in its military intervention in Syria, with background & its strategic framing of ‘Primakov Doctrine In Action.’
Syria Timeline: Since the Uprising Against Assad, (Mona Yacoubian), U.S. Institute of Peace
1 January 2021, brief timeline and analysis of the Syria Conflict.
US sends mechanized troops back into Syria, (Kyle Rempfer), Army Times
18 September 2020, report on the Pentagon sending mechanized units back to Syria, deploying Sentinel radar, and increasing frequency of fighter jet patrols over U.S. forces in eastern Syria after Russian forces’ vehicles sideswiping a U.S. military vehicle & injuring 4 U.S. troops in August.
ISIS extremists step up attacks as Iraq, Syria grapple with virus, (Qassim Abdul-Zahra, Bassem Mroue, and Samya Kullab | AP), Military Times
3 May 2020, article on ISIS attacks in Iraq & Syria amidst COVID-19.
Turkey-Syria offensive: US sanctions Turkish ministries, BBC News
15 October 2019, article detailing U.S. sanctions on Turkish ministries and senior officials upon Turkey's military offensive in northern Syria to push the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) from the border region, displacing at least 160,000 Kurdish civilians.
Effects of the U.S. Withdrawal from Syria, Institute for the Study of War (ISW)
14 October 2019, ISW publications, analyses, maps & graphics of situation reports, and podcasts, assessing the immediate effects of U.S. withdrawal, including responses of jihadist groups and pro-Bashar al Assad regime coalition, and the long-term consequences for American national security interests.
Death toll from Syrian conflict passes half a million, The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights (SOHR)
8 June 2018, brief update on the nearly 511,000 deaths in Syria, with over 350,000 confirmed casualties & the remaining victims yet to be identified.
How Syria’s Death Toll Is Lost in the Fog of War, (Megan Specia), NYT
13 April 2018, article on the impossibility of verifying & counting the number of deaths for many international monitoring groups including the UNHCR, which released its last estimate in 2016 based on 2014 data, as the complex & convoluted war dragged on.
The U.S. Has Troops in Syria. So Do the Russians and Iranians. Here’s Where., (Thomas Gibbon-Neff, Jeremy White, David Botti), NYT
11 April 2018, report & map on military postures of Russia, Iran, and U.S. in Syria.
GLOBAL TRENDS: Forced Displacement in 2017, UNHCR
2017, report on forced displacement worldwide, with Syria as the country with the second-highest IDP population, 6.2 million at the end of 2017 & a total of 6.3 million Syrian refugees by end of 2017 (Afghanistan as the second-largest refugee population globally: 2.6 million people having fled by the end of 2017; South Sudan as the third largest with 2.4 million-the country with the biggest increase in 2017; Myanmar: 1.2 million; Somalia: 986,400).
Is the Expanding U.S. Military Presence in Syria Legal? (Sharmine Narwani), The American Conservative
4 August 2017, report & map showing U.S. military bases and outposts in Syria identified by media and independent sources, and analysis on the U.S. objective of fighting terrorism in Syria & possible territorial and political goals to retain post-conflict zones of influence in the country.
War forced half of all Syrians from home. Here’s where they went., (Mark Bixler, Michael Martinez), CNN
18 April 2016, article & infographics on the forced displacement of 10.6 million Syrians by late 2015 (about half of Syria’s pre-war population), 59 refugees & IDPs from other countries on the move, and how Persian Gulf countries closed their doors on Syrian refugees.
UNHCR: Total number of Syrian refugees exceeds four million for first time, UNHCR
9 July 2015, press release on the number of Syrian refugees in neighboring countries exceeding four million in 2015 & confirming it the world’s single largest refugee crisis in a quarter of a century.
Syrian Refugees in the Region (as of 31 December 2014), ReliefWeb, OCHA Service
31 December 2014 (latest 2014 map), series of monthly maps tracking the Syrian refugees in the 5 neighboring countries: Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey.
Facts & Figures: Syria refugee crisis & international resettlement, Amnesty International
5 December 2014, report on 3.8 million Syrian refugees in the region, with other key facts & figures.
MAP: Where is ISIL Operating?, (Michael Keller, Michael Pizzi), Aljazeera America
1 December 2014 (updated), map showing regions under attack & control of ISIL, including cities and major oil fields in Iraq & Syria.
Damage Density in the Cities of Homs, Aleppo, Hama, Deir Ez Zor, Ar Raqqa, and Daraa, Syria, the United Nations Satellite Centre (UNOSAT)
17 November 2014, map illustrating satellite-detected areas of damage and destruction in these 5 Syrian cities, using satellite imagery from 2014, 2013, 2011, and 2010, UNITAR/UNOSAT created a damage site density index for affected areas in each city.
ISIS Destroying Iraq’s Cultural Heritage One Site at a Time, (Sarah Cascone), artnet news
10 July 2014, report on Iraq’s religious and cultural heritage being razed by the militant group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
The Historic Scale of Syria’s Refugee Crisis, (David Furst, Jon Huang, Sergio Peçanha, with photos by Lindsay Addario), NYT
16 October 2013, report with photos & infographics on Syrian Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) & refugees in MENA countries.
Syria: Government Likely Culprit in Chemical Attack, Human Rights Watch
10 September 2013, report of evidence on Syrian forces’ weapons-grade nerve agent (sarin) attacks on two Damascus suburbs on 21 August 2013, killing hundreds of civilians including children, documented in a 22-page detailed report, “Attacks on Ghouta: Analysis of Alleged Use of Chemical Weapons in Syria,” with HRW analysis on witness accounts of the rocket attacks, info on likely source of attacks, physical remnants of weapon systems used, and medical symptoms exhibited by the victims as documented by medical staff.
Turkey’s Thanksgiving Bid for Air Defense NATO’s only Middle Eastern Member Readies its Borders for Conflict, Syrian Support Group Policy Blog
3 December 2012, post on Turkey requesting NATO for Patriot missiles defense systems, as well as analysis on airstrikes & chemical weapons, Syrian refugee inflows, Kurdish’s plans for autonomous region, Syria-Turkey relations, and possible Turkey’s military intervention.
Syrians at refugee camp struggle with choking sand and wretched conditions, the Guardian
3 September 2012, infographic & report on harsh conditions at Zataari camp in Jordan, built to accommodate 500 people but hosting more than 26,000 Syrian refugees with two-thirds of them children.
Syrian Arab Republic: Syrian Refugees (as of 28 June 2012), Relief Web, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Detailed infographics on Syrian Refugees in neighboring countries as of 28 June 2012.
The Popular Mobilization Forces in Iraq: A Political Bargaining Chip?, (Mohanad Faris), FIKRA FORUM, the Washington Institute for Near East Policy
8 April 2022, brief analysis on the prolonging Iraq’s political crisis, with tension and conflict between opposing forces on government formation.
U.S. pulls out of a third base in Iraq, (Samiya Kullab, AP), Military Times
29 March 2020, report on the U.S.-led Coalition in Iraq withdrawing from K1 Air Base in the northern Iraqi province of Kirkuk, consolidating its troops to only 2 locations in Iraq.
Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) and Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF): Orders of Battle, (Jessa Rose Dury-Agri, Omer Kassim, Patrick Martin), ISW
December 2017, study evaluating the capabilities and disposition of the ISF & presenting an Order of Battle of the PMF to help U.S. decision makers and forces on the ground recognize and remediate the presence of Iranian-backed militias within the ISF, as U.S. partnering with the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) to defeat ISIS & liberate ISIS urban holdings in Iraq. Juxtaposing various Iraqi Army (IA) & Federal Police (FP) divisions’ original areas of responsibility with their areas of deployment in August 2017, it highlights potential future security risks outside of current battle zones in Iraq. The study also provides information on IA brigades’ affinity toward and cooperation with the PMF, highlighting increasing Iranian influence within the ISF.
The War After ISIS Begins in Iraq, (Jennifer Cafarela, Omer Kassim, Najjam Malik), ISW
15 October 2017, analysis on the potential infighting between the Iraqi Government, backed by Iran, and Iraqi Kurds for control of Kirkuk, Iraq after ISF, Counterterrorism Services (CTS), Federal Police, and Iranian-backed PMF launched a combined offensive to seize the K1 military base, Kirkuk airport, and Kirkuk’s oilfields from Kurdish Peshmerga forces at 2:00 a.m. on October 15th.
Iraqi Army Retakes Government Complex in Central Ramadi, NYT
28 December 2015 latest update, series of comprehensive updates on efforts from Iraq to stem the rise of the Islamic State, with many maps, photos, videos published from 13 June 2014.
Dwindling oil reserves in Baghdad lead to soaring prices worldwide, (Fazel Hawrami, Terry McCallister), the Guardian
18 June 2014, report on spiking prices of crude oil as ISIS attacking Baiji Oil Refinery, Iraq’s biggest oil refinery north of Baghdad, forcing the closure of 300,000 barrels a day of refined petroleum products.
Afghanistan | Country Page, HRW
Summary & reports on human rights issues in Afghanistan, with related videos & news.
The U.S. War in Afghanistan, Council on Foreign Relations
Timeline of the two-decade U.S.-led war in Afghanistan, 1999-2021.
Afghanistan: Events of 2022, HRW
Report on Taliban government’s rules and policies violating a wide range of fundamental rights of women and girls, repressing the media & critics, forcibly closing civil society’s organizations, and carrying out arbitrary detentions, torture, and summary executions of former security officers and perceived enemies. Afghanistan’s humanitarian crisis worsened in 2022 largely due to its economic collapse since the Taliban takeover.
Costs of the Afghanistan war, in lives and dollar, Ellen Nickmeyer, the Associate Press (AP)
16 August 2021, report with data on the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan with the U.S. ending its combat role & Taliban taking over most of the country.
Agreement for Bringing Peace to Afghanistan, U.S. Department of State
29 February 2020, document of the Agreement for Bringing Peace to Afghanistan, a.k.a. the U.S.-Taliban deal, signed by the U.S. and the Taliban on 29 February 2020 in Doha, Qatar, to end the 20-year war in Afghanistan.
The Civilian Casualty Files, (Azmat Khan, Lila Hassan, Sarah Almukhtar, Rachel Shorey), New York Times
18 December 2021, the Times’ release of Pentagon’s confidential assessments of civilian casualties from U.S.-led airstrikes in Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan. Documents date-stamped from 21 May 2015 to 28 March 2018, with full details including incident date, location, description, assessment, etc.
What to Know About the Civilian Casualty Files, (Michael Levenson), New York Times
18 December 2021, article summarizing NYT investigation on civilian casualties in Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan from U.S.-led airstrikes due to flawed intelligence and imprecise targeting.