Land Power, Rebuilding Syria, India’s Drones, and More
The latest at Inkstick Media.
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During the more than 13-year civil war in Syria, the regime of Bashar al-Assad held onto power, in part, through a series of gruesome massacres. One of those massacres took place in Darayya, a suburb of Damascus, where the population shrunk from 250,000 before the war to around 100,000 today. Now, as Omar Hamed Beato reports, many of Darayya’s residents are returning — and are trying to rebuild by whatever means they can.
Meanwhile, thousands of Ukrainian citizens in Lebanon have found themselves stuck between two wars, one at the hands of Russia and the other thanks to Israel’s invasion. With Ukraine still under the weight of Moscow’s assault, Madeline Edwards reports, fleeing Lebanon became a far more difficult task.
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“Drone Wars Find a New Battlefield in India, Pakistan, and China” by Hanan Zaffar (Feb. 24)
The border areas between India, Pakistan, and China have become a high-tech battleground in recent years. Drones, many equipped with artificial intelligence, have increasingly appeared above, hovering in skies at increased frequencies.
“The Power of Land” by Jon Letman (Feb. 25)
In an interview with Inkstick, University of Chicago political science professor and author Michael Albertus speaks about his new book, Land Power: Who Has It, Who Doesn’t, and How That Determines the Fate of Societies.
“Ukrainians in Lebanon Feel War Following Them Everywhere” by Madeline Edwards (Feb. 26)
There are about 5,000 Ukrainian citizens in Lebanon, according to Ukraine’s Charges d’Affaires, who says most of whom are women and children. Today, the Mediterranean country’s Ukrainian population feels torn between two wars.
“In Darayya, Syrians Look to Rebuild Amid Financial Strain” by Omar Hamed Beato (Feb. 27)
In 2012, in what became known as the Darayya massacre, Syrian government forces killed more than 700 people over a period of two days. More than a decade later, Bashar al-Assad is gone, but the people of Darayya are still trying to rebuild their lives.
“Deep Dive: How Did the Capitol Riot Impact the Far Right Abroad?” by Inkstick (Feb. 28)
A new paper at the British Journal of Political Science asks whether the pro-Trump, Jan. 6 riots at the US Capitol exacted a toll on the far right in European countries. In both Germany and the Netherlands, the author found, that foreign insurrection proved detrimental to domestic far-right parties.
From the desk of Patrick Strickland, managing editor of Inkstick Media.