Alex J. Bellamy provides a forensic account of the world's failure to protect Syrian civilians from mass atrocities. Drawing on interviews with key players, documents from the United Nations and other international organizations, and sources from the Middle East and beyond, he traces the missteps of the international response to Syria's civil war.

Alex J. Bellamy provides a forensic account of the world¿s failure to protect Syrian civilians from mass atrocities. Drawing on interviews with key players, documents from the United Nations and other international organizations, and sources from the Middle East and beyond, he traces the missteps of the international response to Syriäs civil war.

Alex J. Bellamy, champion of the concept of the "responsibility to protect," takes a hard look at why powerful actors did not protect hundreds of thousands of Syrians who perished during the civil war. His sober conclusion: the war was so deadly because some actors were unwilling to compromise and would do anything to win, combined with the "core fact" that the fate of Syria's people was no one's consistent priority. Detailed, well-written, and thoroughly referenced case studies of key events and actors make Syria Betrayed essential reading for everyone who is interested in the Syrian civil war and its implications for the future.