Three recent documentaries on Syria I found quite informative. The first, Syria: The Reckoning (Al Jazeera), is an excellent 90-minute survey of modern Syrian history. The second, Syria Behind the Lines, is a PBS Frontline production offering the viewer an insider's look into the present conflict, focusing on the Orontes river valley in the far west, just north of Lebanon. (The footage captured by Frontline's crew is at times astounding, reminding one of the dangers risked by war journalists.) The third is another historical Al Jazeera documentary (50 min.) examining the Syria-Lebanon dynamic. If looking to watch all three, I would suggest the presented order.
The current violence in Syria is a dark chapter in the Arab Spring, and many hands are stirring the pot: the major powers of the United States, China, and Russia; various regional powers like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey, and Iran; and naturally the Bashar al-Assad regime and the Free Syrian Army resistance looking to unseat him. Though Syria is a lower-priority state in the Middle East regarding US policy, Washington would prefer to see a pro-Western outcome while expending minimal, if any, effort to get it. Should the regime survive, al-Assad is a known quantity and Washington can live with him. Moreover, should the regime survive, it will likely be with attenuated authority. The days of total control are over.
In the meantime, the conflict between the rebellion and the regime could (and might) grind on for years. Creating an armed insurrection in the first place has proven unwise; resistance movements can choose nonviolence and get shot at a little, or take up arms and get shot at a lot. It's been the latter scenario for two years now, resulting in 70,000 dead and millions displaced, internally and into neighboring countries. Genuine efforts toward diplomacy could very well bear fruit, but would likely require international involvement at the level of Washington and Moscow.
Regardless of outcomes, what we are seeing right now is the result of foreign manipulation. Syria was born of European interference. Dictatorships, coups, and resistance are in the country's DNA. It's common to hear people draw racist conclusions because of the instability in places like the Middle East, Africa, and so on. Yet, when the different countries in these regions became "independent" - many in the early post-World War II period - it would take decades for the results of the manner in which they were created to fully unfold, like a slow chemical reaction. At this very moment, Syria is showcasing the destructive nineteenth-century policies of imperial Western Europe, especially Britain and France. There is no "that was then." It's now.
1. Syria: The Reckoning (Al Jazeera)
http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/aljazeeraworld/2013/04/2013415114923968435.html
2. Syria Behind the Lines (PBS)
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/syria-behind-the-lines
3. Lebanon: Sibling of Syria (Al Jazeera)
http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/aljazeeraworld/2013/03/2013312113015362359.html
