Shul'ts E.E.Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod - National Research University, Nizhny Novgorod, Russian Federation nuap1@yandex.ru
The article deals with the analysis of the causes of the two-year civil war in Syria. Understanding the causes of the civil war in Syria is important not only in itself, but also for the assessment of options for the development of the events and the possibility of ending the bloodshed. Existing contradictions in society including the confessional and regional ones were the only primary combustible material for the manifestation of social protest that was quickly assumed the most radical form of an armed confrontation. The social protest in Syria like in all countries of the so-called "Arab Spring" was used in the struggle for power and political preferences. Interdenominationalism of the conflict in Syria is only socio-psychological factor and it serves as a flag to identify and mobilize supporters on the both sides of the "territory of the conflict" and beyond. The author points out that according to the experts, half of the rebels in Syria are "jihadists" (supporters of the global Jihad) or radical Islamists and most of the fighters are foreign mercenaries and Al-Qaida supporters. In addition, alongside the opposition fight young people of Arab descent and Muslims, who are citizens of the United Kingdom, France, Holland, Belgium, Australia, Russia and other countries. Long ago, the proportion of foreigners in the total rebel ranks started to surpass the Syrian citizens. The paper emphasizes that on the side of the current President of Syria also foreign mercenaries, among them Iranians, Iraqi Shiites and the militia of the radical Shiite group Hezbollah fight. This state of affairs explains the tactics and behavior of the armed forces of the opposition, who surprised many observers: terror towards the local population and the destruction of important social and economic facilities. The fact of the matter is that the "rebels" do not need the support of the population, since it is not a civil war in the true sense of the word.
Keywords: Arab Spring, Syria, social protest, riot technologies, civil war causes, society, religious and regional conflicts, armed confrontation
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