Abstract
This chapter studies the coronavirus pandemic in war conditions by analyzing the case of Syria, where a civil war has been ongoing since 2011. It reveals that COVID-19 was trouble in another trouble, impoverishing people, causing hunger and death. The research also shows that since the pandemic does not cause a high number of fatalities that can force warring parties to lay down their weapons, the Syrian regime and the two hostile opposition groups continued to fight. The study argues that the Assad regime has weaponized COVID-19 to force dissidents to kneel. Yet, opposition groups resisted the regime and tried to survive with the help of their allies. Theoretically, this study agrees that human security is not possible without state security and argues that authoritarian regimes can sacrifice the former to ensure the survival of the latter. Methodologically, besides literature review and benefiting from reports about COVID-19, interviews were made with experts.
TopMethodology
A literature review was made for the theoretical section discussing Covid-19 vs. human security dichotomy in terms of method. Since the pandemic is continuing, it was not possible to find enough academic studies. Thus news stories and reports prepared by the Syrian government, opposition groups, and international organizations were wielded. Besides, interviews were done concerning people that know the situation in Syria well. However, it was impossible to access someone that can explain the situation in the regime-held areas and northeast Syria under the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) control. Therefore, the information and data about these areas were obtained from the media.
Key Terms in this Chapter
PKK: Partiya Karkariyen Kurdistan.
ISIS: Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.
SARS Cov: Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus.
WHO: World Health Organization.
UNDP: The United Nations Development Programme.
YPG: Yekineyen Parastina Gel.
OCHA: Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
FSA: Free Syrian Army.
COVID-19: Coronavirus disease 2019.
HRW: Human Rights Watch.
ICU: Intensive care unit.
IDP: Internationally displaced people.
HTS: Hayat Tahrir Sham.
SDF: Syrian Democratic Forces.
UN: United Nations.
UNCHR: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.