Bashir al-Assad’s Syrian dictatorship is fighting a “creeping war of repression” hideously similar to the “creeping war of aggression” Slobodan Milosevic’s Serbian dictatorship pursued, first in Croatia and then Bosnia, precisely two decades ago. Milosevic’s forces would attack, seize a niche of Croatia or Bosnia, then halt and wait. Milosevic would assure the U.N. and Western Europe that he would revive negotiations and seek a durable ceasefire. As diplomatic criticism subsided, Milosevic’s forces would renew their assaults. The international community’s response? Another cycle of complaints and threats of economic sanctions.
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