Syria Media Roundup (May 31)

[This is a roundup of news articles and other materials circulating on Syria and reflects a wide variety of opinions. It does not reflect the views of the Syria Page Editors or of Jadaliyya. You may send your own recommendations for inclusion in each week`s roundup to syria@jadaliyya.com by Monday night of every week] 

Regional and International perspectives

Jeffrey Feltman Leaks Again Al-Akhbar publishes a partial transcript of the meeting minutes between Jeffrey Feltman and Lebanese officials.

Arab Economist Samir Aita: impact of international sanctions on Syria Aita deplores the fact that the sanctions affect the Syrian people while it remains unknown how much the government suffer from them.

Beyond Bashar Syria’s Rebels are Facing far More Significant Resistance Charles Rizk outlines some of the economic and political interests that tie Iran, Russia and China to Syria.

Venezuela breaks embargo against Syria anew

Imperialism and the Left

Going Rogue: America`s Unconventional Warfare in the Mideast  Sharmine Narwani on how to destabilize a country by provoking its peaceful majority

West`s Undermining UN Paves Way for  NATO Syrian Intervention Tony Catarluci wonders why media outlets rely on unknown “activists” rather than the U.N. observers on the ground.

"The Salvador Option For Syria" Michel Chossudovsky discusses Diplomat Robert Ford’s experience in Iraq before being posted in Syria two months before the uprising.

Daylight Massacre Response to the Houla events: “If regional and world powers have any sense of ethics or humanity, the least they could do is keep quiet and desist from issuing empty statements.”

On Syrian narratives

BBC Engages In Anti-Syria Propaganda? Truth behind BBC’s vicious tactic An instance of a problematic and inaccurate coverage of the Houla killings.

Robert Fisk: The West is horrified by children`s slaughter now. Soon we`ll forget Fisk’s pessimistic account of the Houla events, which he parallels with the Algerian War.

Will Al Qaeda cement its foothold in Syria? Fawaz E. Gerges fears the Houla killings will bring a stronger extremist involvement in Syria.

How can Peace be Brought to Syria? Al-Jazeera’s Inside Syria guests discuss what could be done for Syria following the Houla “massacre.”

Inside Syria:

Syria’s Dignity Strike: City Merchants Speak People had contradictory explanations as to what happened on the day of the Dignity Strike.

Syrian Television: What Should we Watch Tonight? An overview of the Syrian channels’ coverage of Syria, where the pro and anti-regime outlets are fighting a “media war is as important as the battles on the ground.

Syria’s Growing Economic Challenge Yazigi’s argument that the geography of the Syrian uprising reflects the economic and social crisis faced by the Syrian population since the early 1980s

The Kurdish Question: A General Approach Badrakhan Ali advocates for the creation of a new citizenship and equality that encompasses the Kurdish identity in the form of a pluralistic society.

Syria After the Massacre Patrick Cockburn talks about the mood in Syria after the Houla events.

Policy and Reports

How Washington Lost Syria In his policy report, Gary Gambil writes that it is too late in the Obama administration to stop the regime from “slugging it out.”

Syria: UN Inquiry Should Investigate Houla Killings  Human Rights Watch wants the U.N. to investigate further the Houla killings.                                                                                                   

Art and social media

Syracuse University Filmmaker Killed in Syria The New York Times publishes a piece in memory of Basel Shahade, his art and role in the Syrian uprising.                                                                        

Malek Jandali: An Ode to Revolt Portrait of Syrian pianist Malek Jandali and his personal involvement in the Syrian revolution

Arabic:

وطنية النظام والوطنية الجديدة 
Michel Kilo writes about the difference between the regime’s nationalism and the new nationalism that the revolution has created.  

نظرة على الثورة السورية 
National Coordination Committee for the Forces of Democratic Change in Syria presents an overview of the Syrian revolution.                                                             

المشكلة في الإعلام السوري
Fayez Sarah writes about the problems in the Syrian media despite the new “reforms” that the regime has enacted in this sector.  

تقرير للامم المتحدة يتهم القوات السورية والمعارضة “بانتهاكات خطيرة”
Reuters : A United Nations report accuses both the Syrian regime and the opposition of serious abuses. 

من أجل هذا خرجنا… 
Rim Fleihan recounts her story with a journalist who had been arrested and brutalized by the Syrian regime for writing an article in her defense. 

خيار كوسوفو
Munther Khaddam writes that there have been talks in the international community about an *unlikely* "Kosovo choice" as an alternative to the Anan initiative, in the case that the latter fails.

“حرائر انخل”… نساء… في زمن الثورة
The Damascus bureau on the role of the women of Enkel, Daraa in the Syrian revolution= 

مقابلة| سلامة كيلة: الثورات مدرسة في الممارسة والوعي
Al-Akhbar’s Sarah Al-Quda interviews Palestinian-Syrian thinker and writer Salam Kayla on the Arab uprisings.  

مجزرة الحولة وثقافة الجزار
Subhi Hadidi on the Al-Hola massacre.

سوريا.. من الوريد إلى الوريد
Nasri Al-Sayegh argues that, in spite of all of the hardships that both the regime and the opposition have created in Syria, the revolution goes on.                                                                                            

آصف شوكت: احتمالات غياب لا يقصم ظهر النظام
Subhi Hadidi : the *possible* absence of Al-Asad’s brother-in-law Asef Shawkat will not break the regime’s back.