Smoke from an American air strike in Kobane
The international coalition that was assembled to confront ISIS has certainly made its mark, but as an example of tragi-comedy.
Following weeks of airstrikes and related anti-jihadist efforts in Iraq and Syria, ISIS militants are moving steadily closer to Baghdad, and to the Syrian-Turkish border in Ain al-Arab.
Nearly 200,000 people have fled Anbar province, and the coalition continues to struggle to convince Turkey to play a meaningful role – against a group of fighters lacking air power and significant military assets.
Perhaps certain Western politicians feel good about themselves when they make candid remarks about the effort.
Perhaps they think it’s refreshing to call the anti-ISIS coalition a work in progress, with “assignments” still to be handed out, as John Kerry recently put it, or as his British counterpart Philip Hammond said Monday, to predict that the air campaign won’t be enough to stop ISIS.
Officials from the 40-plus member coalition appear adept only at offering lectures and theories on what needs to be done, and how others must “step up.”
What they’ve failed to do themselves is step up and offer a viable solution in Iraq, after their countries oversaw the dismantling of the Iraqi army, laying the groundwork for the current mess. They should also take responsibility for delaying a decision to assist mainstream rebels in Syria over the past several years, as ISIS steadily organized and seized territory.
The best course of action for coalition officials is silence – until they can offer rhetoric and policies that convince people in the region to take them seriously and risk their lives for the cause.
A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Daily Star on October 14, 2014, on page 7.
Read more: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Opinion/Editorial/2014/Oct-14/273940-too-little-too-late.ashx#ixzz3G8VQXvBm
Follow us: @DailyStarLeb on Twitter | DailyStarLeb on Facebook
Categories: Arab World, Asia, Syria