I couldn’t bring myself to write yesterday.<\/p>\n
It isn’t because I didn’t have anything I wanted to write about, but rather because I didn’t know how to write it. \u00a0I suppose in a way, I still don’t how to write what I want to write.<\/p>\n
My newsfeed was full of the news that yesterday, the rebels in the city of Aleppo were nearly wiped out. \u00a0The conflict in Syria is incredibly difficult for me to figure out. \u00a0Rebels and Pro-government forces have been fighting for so long, and so bitterly that neither side is necessarily better than the other. \u00a0While it is true that Pro-government forces have used chemical weapons, guided munitions, and artillery bombardments in an attempt to destroy those who are rebelling, those who are rebelling don’t have clean hands either. \u00a0Many rebel groups are known for their direct links to organizations we would consider terrorist organizations. \u00a0Pro-government forces regularly bomb hospitals and schools. \u00a0Rebel forces hide in those places…drawing the fire upon the innocent.<\/p>\n
The conflict in Syria is hard to unravel, especially after nearly 5 years of fighting.<\/p>\n
No one has clean hands.<\/p>\n
My thoughts are filled with what-ifs…what if the UN had found a way to effectively intervene and de-escalate this conflict early in the first year? \u00a0What if our own government had enforced the red-line it set to keep chemical weapons off of the battle field? \u00a0What if the Russians had not joined the fighting? \u00a0What would have happened if Russia and China had not blocked a security council resolution with their invincible vetoes?<\/p>\n
What if I had started writing about this sooner?<\/p>\n
What if I had found my way there as I feel called to do?<\/p>\n
There is plenty of blame for all sides, including myself.<\/p>\n
As I watched videos of those who were in the rebel areas say goodbye to anyone who would listen, as they told us they honestly did not expect to live through the next few hours, I can’t even describe what was going on in my heart and in my head. \u00a0How could this be? \u00a0What could I have done?<\/p>\n