ISIS is an occupation force. Assad is a spent force who could no longer preserve the territorial integrity of Syria without relying on foreign forces. Syria is now being balkanised. The Kurds have their Agenda and are pursuing it with determination. Turkey has it’s agenda and is protecting the Turks of Syria. Iran and Hezbullah have their Agenda and they are pursuing it in alliance with Assad. Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other gulf states have their agenda and are supporting certain so-called moderate rebels. Russia has its agenda and the coalition led by US has its agenda even though the interests of the participants are diverse and often contradictory.
What is disappointing is that the Agenda of the sovereign people of Syria who are not puppets of Assad or the Islamic state are yet to be identified and put as the principal agenda of the struggle in Syria.
France almost got off track to focus on fighting an occupation force while neglecting the fate of those who are under occupation. However, it did not take long for the contradictory interests of the intervention forces to become clear when Turkey shot the Russian Aircraft.
It would not be a surprise if Turkish planes are shot down when they fly into Syrian air space to bomb the Kurds.
Hence instead of facilitating the liberation of the Syrian people and enabling them to affirm their right to self determination and Independence, focus is on exterminating ISIS not knowing that the only way to uproot ISIS is to establish stable democratic secular Republic which make all ethno-linguistic groups equal in citizenship and entitled to liberty, dignity and prosperity in common. ISIS is one of the symptoms of the disintegration of the Syrian state. To focus on the symptom and not the illness will only allow it to get worse.
The primary task is to bring Syrians to the negotiating table and start to prepare the road map for a post Assad and Post ISIS Syria. This is the only way to harmonise the contradictory interests. Stretching the net to fight terrorism and building a coalition without agreement on the final solution would only isolate more people.
