Syrian civil war drags in Mideast, global powers

[robertpaulsen]

Source: Reuters

(Reuters) - As Syria's uprising escalates into outright civil war and begins to drag in other states, it risks fuelling not only wider regional confrontation but also growing antagonism between the world's great powers.

After months of largely peaceful demonstrations in the face of a bloody government crackdown, Syrian opposition fighters look to be behind an ever rising number of attacks on forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad.

That in itself could mark the beginning of a long, bloody, open-ended civil war. And speculation about foreign military intervention could even spark a Cold War-style face-off between Russia and the United States.

Analysts and foreign governments have long said they believed Iran was providing military and logistics support to Damascus, and some now suspect the opposition too is now receiving foreign weapons.


Read more: http://in.reuters.com/article/2011/11/30/syria-powers-idINDEE7AT0IM20111130