Socialist Appeal - International Marxist Tendency
Marxism. Socialism. Revolution.
Before they have even started, the so-called peace talks about the future of Syria have collapsed. As the balance of forces shifts in the war, none of the parties on the ground have any reason to take serious steps in the talks. All the geopolitical contradictions and tensions are coming to the fore.
The recent execution of Al-Nimr, a Shia cleric leader, by the Saudis highlights the crisis facing the regime. The economy is in a fragile state as the price of oil falls and money is hemorrhaged on regional wars and adventures. Increased repression indicates a fear of the rulers about an impending movement from below.
The downing of a Russian jet in Syria by the Turkish military was clearly a provocation on the part of the Turkish president Erdogan. His aim was to stop an alliance being formed between Russia and the West in Syria. He has achieved the opposite with Turkey now more isolated and the major world powers coming closer to each other.
We publish here two recent video talks in which Alan Woods and Hamid Alizadeh discuss the Syrian civil war, the role of imperialism in the Middle East, and the refugee crisis that has been created as a result, as millions flee war and poverty.
Over the past few weeks international media have reported on growing tensions and daily violence escalating in Palestine and Israel. These attacks are not organised by any of the Palestinian factions but are clearly a symptom of the desperate rage of a layer of Palestinian youth against the asphyxiating stranglehold of the Israeli state.