To the editor: With the fall of Syria's ruthless dictator and finally the opening of his prison doors, the world is getting a full picture of the barbarism Bashar Assad unleashed on his country's innocent civilians for years. Countless Syrians were kidnapped, kept in horrible conditions, tortured and massacred.
All we need to know about Russian dictator Vladimir Putin is that he has provided safe haven to Assad, the man who should be tried for his crimes against humanity just as the monsters of the Nazi regime did at Nuremberg.
Oren Spiegler, Peters Township, Pennsylvania.
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To the editor: Can anyone other than this opinion writer claim that there is a “new regime” established a week after “the fall of” Assad? And did the writer even think for a moment about why, after having been bombed at will and its internationally recognized border invaded by Israel with US support, the Syrian public might not find persuasive his list of dictates to which is referenced?
The history of us taking for granted that America's strategic interests in the region are more legitimate and primary than the national interests of any individual country is well documented.
However, if no one in Syria has any knowledge or memory of how successful our State Department's same cut-and-paste requirements proved in Libya, Iraq, and Afghanistan, perhaps the author will not seem so ignorant.
Ted Rosenblatt, Pacific Palisades
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To the editor: Peace is definitely cheaper than continuation of conflict. I believe that the time has come for a regional ceasefire in the Middle East, including immediate talks between the Kurds and the Turks, between the Lebanese nation in all its parts and the Israelis and, of course, also between the Palestinians and the Israelis. .
I don't think anyone will miss the Assad regime in the long term. I will even include the Iranians and the Russians, since it was a shame. Everyone will be forced to face some uncomfortable negotiations that could possibly produce peace in the region. No expulsions or land grabs, just an offering to neighboring nations of equality, respect and non-aggression.
The United States would need to guarantee the stability of the next Syrian government. There are too many war dead on all sides who would instead be enjoying their grandchildren right now.
Mike Caggiano, San Mateo
