While the Syrian war seems to embody all that is complex, alien, and thus incomprehensible about the Middle East, the five-year-old brutal conflict can in fact be explained through a set of global historical factors that emanate from the world made by Europe in the wake of World War One. This talk will shed light…

Persistent claims that the Syrian regime is “non-sectarian” result from a failure to distinguish between sectarianism as an explicit ideology, and sectarianism as an often unspoken technique of power. Whereas the Assad family has generally purported to act in the name of “national unity”, and accordingly minimised discursive expressions of sectarianism, its actual practices throughout…

On September 30, the Syrian Peace Action Centre (SPACE), the Norwegian Centre for Humanitarian Studies (NCHS) and Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) will host a roundtable discussion on the Politics of Humanitarian Aid in Syria. This event is for invited guests. Background Delivering humanitarian aid in conflict situations has always been difficult. Syria is proving to be no exception.…

Mazen Darwish, one of Syria's most prominent human rights activists, will give a speech about his experience in Syria before and after the revolution as a human rights advocate. Afterwards, Darwish will be interviewed by the Norwegian journalist and author Åsne Seierstad.   Mazen Darwish is a Syrian lawyer and free speech advocate, and the…

The idea of a Syria International intends to refocus attention on the agency of Syrians in their struggle and consequently to demand international solidarity and acknowledgement of their rightful and just cause. This panel assesses the isolation of Syrian civilians by identifying those who neglect them, as well as those rare people who are determined…