As a nation, Syria is the home to many ethnic and religious minorities, in which the Sunni is a majority. Assad’s government used identity politics with the aim of achieving political support claiming to be the protector of Syrian minorities against the Sunni majority. In addition, Alawite militias were sent by the Assad (also belonging to the Alawite sect) to put down Sunni rebellions. Both of these cases can help validate that there has been...
As a nation, Syria is the home to many ethnic and religious minorities, in which the Sunni is a majority. Assad’s government used identity politics with the aim of achieving political support claiming to be the protector of Syrian minorities against the Sunni majority. In addition, Alawite militias were sent by the Assad (also belonging to the Alawite sect) to put down Sunni rebellions. Both of these cases can help validate that there has been a shift towards new wars with the end of the Cold War and the turn of the century. This is highlighted once these cases are compared to cases of old wars such as World War II. During World War II, each state-funded their respective armies, and the war was fought on an ideological motive, i.e., democracy against totalitarianism. Upon analyzing the cases of Angola and Syria, the evidence advocates that violence in International Relations has shifted away from traditional warfare in the direction of the concept of ‘new wars.’
