At the moment, planes are flying over Syria and dropping bombs. Unfortunately, they are Syrian military aircraft bombing their own people. This could be stopped. The United States, NATO and others under the rubric of Friends of Syria have the capacity to implement a no-fly zone — and to do it fast. Grounding Syria’s air force and helicopter gunships would not only aid the opposition but also send a strong message to the regime and its supporters that their days are numbered. As things stand, those days are not numbered, and the end is in doubt. For example, Aleppo has apparently been retaken by Syrian forces loyal to Assad.
It is true enough that the outcome of the civil war may not benefit the United States or, for that matter, Israel — even if it represents a black eye for Assad’s backer, Iran. If the mostly Sunni insurgents win, they may well impose an Islamist regime and turn, with ferocity, on the Shiites (and their allies, the Alawites) as well as the Christians, 10 percent of the population. And an Islamist Syria would be a more implacable foe of Israel’s than the secular Assad regime. The chances of this happening only improve the longer the war goes on and jihadists from all over the Islamic world join the fight. Time is not on our side.
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