Bob Dreyfuss: What History Says About Arming the Syrian Opposition
  • July 8, 2013

Bob Dreyfuss: What History Says About Arming the Syrian Opposition

Bob Dreyfuss: What History Says About Arming the Syrian Opposition

While the success of US engagement in the Syrian civil war remains to be seen, this is not the first time the US has attempted to shape the trajectory of foreign conflicts by arming rebel opposition movements.

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Watch What Does History Say About U.S. Success in Arming Rebels? on PBS. See more from PBS NewsHour.

Amid escalating hostilities and alleged proof that the Assad regime has used chemical weapons, the Obama Administration recently began arming Syrian rebels. While the success of US engagement in the Syrian civil war remains to be seen, this is not the first time the US has attempted to shape to trajectory of foreign conflicts by arming rebel opposition movements. So what does history tell us?

Nation contributor Bob Dreyfuss and former Reagan administration official Michael Pillsbury join PBS Newshour to debate what the Obama Administration can learn from US efforts to support Muhajideen in Afghanistan.

—Jake Scobey-Thal  

The US isn’t the only foreign actor trying to shape the outcome in Syria. Mohamad Bazzi documents the role of Hezbollah in the civil war. 

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