“If the opposition were not to be armed early on, [Syrian President Bashar al-]Assad would not have had the excuse for such violence against our people, and he would not have committed such despicable crimes,” Ahmad, a Syrian from Aleppo who fled to Turkey nearly a year ago, told Al-Monitor.
There is no dispute over the cruelty of the Assad regime and that he ultimately needs to go, and neither is there need to excuse the regional powers from their roles and responsibilities in the making of this carnage in Syria.