Ukraine War; Is Russia’s Military Strategy in Syria Being Repeated?
Russian fighter jets are bombing Ukraine. People around the world are witnessing war scenes similar to those previously seen in Syria. Syrians who have experienced Russian bombings say Ukraine will face Syria’s fate.
The news website “Tagesthau,” affiliated with Germany’s ARD television network, has reported on how Russian military operations in Syria compare to this country’s military operations in Ukraine. Tagesthau notes that Russia tested hundreds of its own weapons systems in Syria. Smart weapons fired from ships and submarines, new fighter jet flights, drones, bunker-busting missiles are only part of Russia’s weapons testing in Syria.
The report states that Jürers van Bladeren, a military expert from the “Institute for European Politics and Security,” believes Syria was “a laboratory for Russia’s military arsenal.” It is said that approximately 90 percent of Russian Air Force pilots gained “experience” during their mission in Syria.
In September 2015, Russian fighter jets bombed cities and villages under the control of militants opposing Bashar al-Assad. Russia, however, claimed it was fighting Islamist terrorists. At that time, Syria’s president had lost control of much of his country. Putin saw the opportunity to gain a foothold in the Middle East and establish an important strategic base for Russian ships and aircraft.
The Account of a Witness to Russian Fighter Bombing
Daniel Hechler, a reporter for Germany’s ARD television network, recounts the memories of one of the witnesses to Russian operations in this regard: Ali Abdullah, a 28-year-old Syrian, tells of the bombing by Russian jets. Abdullah says that nothing remains of Nuraab, his native village, except a pile of rubble, and Russian fighter jets bombed Nuraab two years ago. He describes how his hometown was destroyed by over 100 bombs in retaliation for opposition to Bashar al-Assad, Syria’s ruler, and his father and two brothers were killed.
Some village residents fled to southern Idlib, the last rebel stronghold in Syria, but Ali Abdullah remained in Nuraab with his two children and farmed until one day he stepped on a mine and lost his leg.
When he witnesses the bombing of fighter jets in Ukraine, he speaks from the experience he has learned: “Russia shows no mercy to children, women, and the elderly in war. They bomb markets, mosques, schools, and everything.”
23,000 Syrians Killed in Russian Fighter Jet Attacks
Syria’s infrastructure was destroyed following Russian military operations. Cities like Aleppo were besieged and cut off from the outside world, and people starved. Countless clinics have been bombed for years. Schools, bakeries, and markets were repeatedly targeted.
Diana Sama’an, an Amnesty International researcher in Syria, says we are now witnessing such war crimes in Ukraine. Amnesty International has documented Russian attacks on civilians and infrastructure in both countries using cluster munitions and high-casualty attacks. More than 23,000 Syrian civilians lost their lives in Russian fighter jet attacks.
From Putin’s perspective, the Syria mission was successful and “now no one can ignore Russia in the Middle East.”
No One Objected to Putin’s Bombings in Syria
Diana Sama’an from Amnesty International expressed regret: “The worst outcome of this war is that no one was held accountable. Nothing happened at the international level or in the UN Security Council. This is probably one of the reasons Putin was encouraged to engage in new wars.”
Ali Abdullah from Idlib believes: “Ukraine will be like Syria, because Russians have no mercy. If they are determined to bomb a target, then that target will be bombed and leveled to the ground.”
11 years have passed since the Syria war, and the Ukraine war has now entered its eleventh day.
Source: DW
