a Chaotic War
The calamitous and chaotic civil war in Syria just got a lot messier.
The five-year-old conflict, which began with a government crackdown on peaceful protests, has drawn a confusing array of players and alliances, fueled the growth of ISIS, and spawned a refugee crisis. The United States can't seem to get its strategy right — and now it's grappling with Russia, which just launched its own bombing campaign.
Here's a look at where things stand now.
A newly-aggressive Russia
After giving the United States and its allies an hour's notice, Russia sent warplanes into Syria on Wednesday to conduct bombings in support of President Bashar Assad. Russia said it was bombing ISIS targets, but U.S. officials questioned whether the strikes were also targeting rebels trying to overthrow Assad, a longtime ally of Russia.
Earlier in the week, Russian President Vladimir Putin told the United Nations General Assembly that the only way to defeat ISIS was to back Assad. President Obama, however, insisted that the only path toward peace was by getting rid of Assad through a "managed transition."
Russia also went behind the United States' back last week and forged an agreement with Iraq, Syria and Iran to share intelligence about ISIS.
A determined United States
The United States and its military partners have not relented in their attempts to weaken ISIS by pounding the terror group's positions with airstrikes in Syria and Iraq. The campaign — dubbed Operation Inherent Resolve — is a year old now, and counts more than 60 countries as partners, including the Muslim states Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates. Together, they have conducted more than 2,500 airstrikes in Syria. The estimated cost so far: $3.87 billion.
Questionable results
All this effort, and ISIS just seems to keep growing. The group has reportedly drawn about 30,000 new recruits into Syria and Iraq, twice the estimate of a year ago. That includes 250 American citizens, according to government estimates.
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