Golan Heights

(Kastrinou, 2012). Kastrinou analyzes different aspects of the challenges that Syrian youth face in reconciling the life they desperately want to live and the life authority figures put forth for them (Kastrinou, 2012). They are faced with having to choose between fulfilling their wants and needs and the meeting the demands set by the strict social and political environment within which they are forced to operate. The author’s case studies were done prior to the civil unrest that struck Syria, and follow the lives of young Syrians in love, a young homosexual man, a Syrian Druze from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (Kastrinou, 2012). Most of the examples the author uses illustrate Arab culture and society pretty accurately; Kastrinou raises valid issues including homosexuality, love between people of different religions and the problems of displacement that residents of the Golan Heights face (Kastrinou, 2012). That said, there are a number of places where the author takes liberties with her translation and interpretations. For example, Kastrinou over analyses a poor translation of a famous song written by poet Mahmoud Darwish and performed by Marcel Khalife called “Rita and the Rifle” (Kastrinou, 2012, p. 63). While the song does illustrate the struggle in wartime that many Arab peoples have experienced, there are certain nuances that come along with translating artistic works and analyzing them without sufficient cultural reference. Kastrinou also analyzes an age-old…

five years, the Environmental Protection Ministry reported on Wednesday morning. The pollution consists of tiny dust particles that in penetrating the respiratory system can irritate the lungs and blood vessels and cause particular problems for susceptible population groups such as the elderly, the chronically ill, pregnant women and infants. The ministry recommends that these groups avoid outdoor physical activity as much as possible. Air pollution levels are expected to remain high in most of…

by forming a committee to resurrect fortunes of the Ba’ath Party. A corrupt election process and militaristic ideals allowed for Hafez al-Assad to gain and exercise control over Syria for over 20 years. Hafez Al-Assad began to gain power after the Baath Party regime ended in 1970. Hafez obtained popularity and control through the bloodless coup, which was “...an overthrowing of a government without violence...”("Bloodless Coup”). Soon after, Assad wanted to test Israel and to reduce Syria’s…

Syria-Israel border in preparation for offensive operations (“Six-Day War,” 2015). The intelligence ultimately proved to be erroneous, but was assumed valid by Egypt and Syria. In response to Soviet intelligence, Egypt deployed troops to the Sanai Peninsula. Egyptian forces removed the United Nations presence and closed the Straits of Teran (Trueman, 2016). The Straits of Teran were an important shipping route for Israel. Only a decade prior, the Israeli government declared that closing the…

Syrian Refugees that are arriving in Canada face many challenges during the resettlement process. These refugees struggle with sanitary living conditions, shelter, food, education, em-ployment and health care. The number of refugees arriving at the same time takes a toll on the planning process which in return makes it difficult and overwhelming in finding suitable shelter for these individuals. Developing a proper resettlement plan is a major key in succeeding in this country. There are a…

Ling Huang 213379474 Pols 2940 20 Oct 2015 Trading weaponry – a chance or a choice Imagine a very angry man who wishes to kill the person in front of him. He asked you for a gun, and you gave him. Then he killed that person with your gun, but you think that it was either you or him who killed but the gun did. This situation does happen in the really world. For many years, Syrians were living in a disorderly and unsafe nation. 12 million of Syrians became refugee. For the past half-decade, they…

Syria: The Conflict, Mass Murder, and the Drive to Fight Back What happened to Syria, and why is the country in a major crisis? What is the United States of America doing to help the oppressed Syrians? Who is Assad, and why he is killing and murdering his own people? What role does Russia play in all of this? The Syrian Conflict has been going on for years. Why has it gotten so bad, and will this country be “saved”? These are the ongoing questions that plague people all over the world today.…

Syria may not be the most known country, but over the last couple of years it has received a lot of attention around the world. Presumably unknown to the vast majority, there has been countless human rights violations occurring within Syria over the span of the last four years. Three violations that spark up concern to Syrian citizens would be the immeasurable murders executed by armed forces in the war, the rebel and ISIS factions recruiting children to be soldiers, and the millions of people…

11.3 million people have been displaced by the civil war in Syria and, despite a lack of coverage recently in the media, the number is only growing (World Vision). When asked, people guessed the number of refugees to be in the thousands and one even responded “is that still going on?” (Mason). We, as people of the world, should help out the refugees by all able-countries working together to assist diplomatically, socially, and economically. In addition, informing the masses about this ongoing…

“All the Syrian people are living a nightmare, they can’t escape it. They had lives before and now they don’t.” – Maher, a Syrian refugee in Europe (Yassin-Kassab & Al-Shami, 2016, p. 147) This quote hit home with me while I was reading Chapter 7 “Dispossession and Exile” and Chapter 8 “Culture Revolutionized” in Burning Country by Robin Yassin-Kassab and Leila Al-Shami. Both chapters focused on the Syrian refugee crisis emerging from the constant protests and feuding stemming from the Syrian…