Albanians and Mercenary in Syria

2024-12-29 16:06:00, Opinione Arben Ramkaj

Chairman of the Center for Interreligious Cooperation, Arben Ramkaj

Hundreds of Albanians, since 2013, participated in the civil war in Syria. Unfortunately, due to ignorance or misguided indoctrination, they became the raw material for the most dangerous terrorist groups that modernism produced in the Middle East. Macabre events and acts, such as the burning of a Jordanian pilot alive or the burying of opponents alive, testified to the barbarity of this conflict. For almost a decade, this civil war was more vicious and with more serious social consequences than the one in Rwanda.

The world thinks the conflict is coming to an end. With the new changes in Syria and the fall of the butcher regime of Bashar al-Assad, many believe that the situation will stabilize and that the new government will be stable and internationally recognized. After the events of 2016, Albania and the region adopted a strategy to combat violent extremism. As a result, the influence of individuals going to fight in foreign countries almost disappeared. This achievement was the fruit of a multifunctional strategy...

Mercenaryism is a well-known phenomenon in modern history. From General Franco's Spanish civil war, Wagner troops acting for Russian interests, to Serbian formations fighting in support of Russia, this phenomenon has left dark traces. Albanian commentators have stated that some Albanians fought as mercenaries in the ranks of the Israeli army during the conflicts in Gaza. Russia, during the repeated bombings of the Albanian embassy in Kiev, accused Albanian citizens of being involved...

A concrete example is the case of Kosovo, where Serbian diplomacy has tried to portray Kosovar Albanians as Muslims with extremist tendencies. This perception is particularly damaging at a time when international diplomacy is extremely sensitive. In my opinion, the foreign mercenaries in the Syrian war will soon face the demand of the new Syrian government to leave the country. These individuals constitute a burden that the new government cannot bear in front of the international community...

Mercenarism as a global phenomenon is impossible to eradicate, but it can be reduced if awareness and education become a shield to protect the youth from the mistakes of the past. . Every wrong idea is fought with a reasoned idea. To prevent in the future the involvement of Albanians in situations and conflicts where they have not been called by their countries and to make it clear that the Islamic religion and national interests do not match their mercenaryism. This is necessary to protect not only the reputac... /CNA