Besides Miley Cyrus, headlines all over the country are talking about one topic: Syria. Since 2011, the nation of Syria has been in a brutal ongoing civil war. What started off as peaceful protests against the government of President Bashar al-Assad quickly escalated to violence; more than 100,000 people have been killed in the conflict and millions of Syrians have fled the country.
Up until now, President Barack Obama has rejected any calls for military action. On August 21st, Syria was accused of using chemical weapons against its own people, killing more than 1,000 people. This violates an international agreement that prohibits the use of chemical weapons. This has caused Obama to take action.
This news was concerning to many. Most people were worried that involvement in Syria would lead to World War III since Syria’s allies include Russia and Iran, who both have nuclear weapons. Others felt that the U.S. should be helping itself before other countries. Polls across the country were showing that most Americans were against military action.
Obama set the story straight in a speech he gave to the country on September 10th. In the speech, President Obama said something most Americans wanted to hear: “I will not put American boots on the ground in Syria.”
Since the address, Russia and the U.S. have worked together to come up with a plan to get Syria to give up its chemical weapons. The plan requires Syria to give a list of their chemical weapons within a week and by the middle of next year, all the chemical weapons must be destroyed. The question now is whether or not Syria will actually follow the plan. Still, Americans do not have to worry about any huge war involving them any time soon.
