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Staff writer for the New Yorker magazine
Staff writer for the New Yorker magazine
PROFILE
Jon Lee Anderson
Guest
FROM Jon Lee Anderson
To the Point
Fertile Ground for ISIS in Libya Last weekend, a faction of the Islamic State beheaded a dozen Christians in Libya, and the eyes of the world turned back to a nation in chaos. Egypt responded with airstrikes — designed to punish ISIS and help one of two rival governments trying to take power in Libya. The UN is trying to get the two groups together. The ISIS group may or not provide a common enemy. In 2011, Europe helped end Moammar Gadhafi's brutal dictatorship in Libya as the US famously "led from behind." With the Islamic State now on Europe's doorstep, will the West intervene again?
Which Way, L.A.?
The Syrian War and Secret U.S. Support As crisis grows more dangerous by the day, nobody yet knows what the Obama Administration is doing to help Syrian rebels against the al-Assad regime. It's more dangerous to smuggle medical supplies than weapons and there are vast stores of chemical weapons. The struggle between Shiites and Sunnis creates the threat of regional instability, even a new Cold War, and the UN has become a non-factor. Since the beginning of peaceful demonstrations in March of last year, some 21,000 people have now died in Syria's crackdown against rebel forces. What's at stake for the region and the rest of the world, including the US? On a grim historical note: seldom have medical personnel been so systematically targeted. It's reportedly more dangerous to smuggle humanitarian aid than weapons. Is it time for the Obama Administration to get directly involved in helping Syrian rebels against the al-Assad regime?
To the Point
The Syrian War and Secret U.S. Support As crisis grows more dangerous by the day, nobody yet knows what the Obama Administration is doing to help Syrian rebels against the al-Assad regime. It's more dangerous to smuggle medical supplies than weapons and there are vast stores of chemical weapons. The struggle between Shiites and Sunnis creates the threat of regional instability, even a new Cold War, and the UN has become a non-factor. Since the beginning of peaceful demonstrations in March of last year, some 21,000 people have now died in Syria's crackdown against rebel forces. What's at stake for the region and the rest of the world, including the US? On a grim historical note: seldom have medical personnel been so systematically targeted. It's reportedly more dangerous to smuggle humanitarian aid than weapons. Is it time for the Obama Administration to get directly involved in helping Syrian rebels against the al-Assad regime?
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