Most recent articles by Bente Scheller
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Deportations to Afghanistan and Syria
The rule of law and its careless enemies
Those who turn to Assad or the Taliban instead of the German constitutional state when it comes to questions of security, fail to understand what makes those regimes tick.
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Hezbollah and the Gaza war
Caught out by its own propaganda
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has a penchant for using strong words. His terrorist organisation has no interest, however, in the Israeli war escalating uncontrollably
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Assad's rehabilitation
At the expense of the Syrian people
A number of Arab League member states have announced in recent weeks that they intend resuming relations with the Syrian regime. A potential invitation to the Arab League summit in Algeria in March was even on the table, but the conference has since been postponed. By Bente Scheller
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War in Syria
The horror of Idlib
The recent escalation of violence in Idlib is also a result of the increasing tensions between Turkey and Russia. The victims are those in Idlib, caught up in a hopeless situation amid a huge spectrum of differing interests. By Bente Scheller
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The demise of Daraa, former rebel stronghold
At the mercy of Assadʹs troops
While Berlin was contemplating secure borders, the Syrian regime embarked on its next campaign to exacerbate the suffering of refugees. To Syriaʹs President Bashar al-Assad, they are nothing more than a weapon. By Bente Scheller
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The Syrian conflict
Priority revenge
The question is often asked what an Islamist rebel victory might mean for Syria's minorities. But what about the acts of revenge that are to be expected from Bashar al-Assad? A commentary by Bente Scheller
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The siege of Aleppo
Seven levels of hell
The breathtaking ruthlessness of Assad′s regime means that the hoped-for humanitarian corridors, aimed at bringing relief to the besieged residents of Syria′s Aleppo, are never likely to materialise. By Bente Scheller
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Syria and Geneva III
The great pretenders
As the Geneva III peace talks get underway, there is no sign that the conference will secure an end to the violence in Syria. The Assad regime can participate safe in the knowledge that it has nothing to fear. A commentary by Bente Scheller
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Airstrikes against IS
Solidarity yet no strategy
Western airstrikes will fail to have any significant impact on the terrorist militia as long as the Syrian rebels, prevented from focusing their efforts on the jihadists by the ongoing offensive staged by Assad′s regime, have to defend themselves simultaneously against IS and Assad. A commentary by Bente Scheller
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The Syrian conflict and the advance of ISIS
Assad and the myth of the lesser evil
Assad has used chemical weapons and laid waste to entire neighbourhoods and regions with barrel bombs. However, in the West, fears of what ISIS Islamists could achieve loom so large that Syria's dictator continues to be seen as a smaller part of the problem. By Bente Scheller
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International policy on Syria
The rehabilitation of Assad
Above all, the West wants stability in Syria. Because he has managed to sit out everything that has happened in recent years, the Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad seems to offer this very stability. But accepting the kind of stability Assad offers would mean having to forget the atrocities committed by his regime. A commentary by Bente Scheller