Since the Sykes-Picot Agreement – 1916- aimed at dividing the Middle East between the two imperialist colonial powers at the time (Britain and France), Western imperialist plans and designs to keep the Middle East fragmented, unstable and under US imperialist control never stopped. The establishment in 1948 of the state of Israel with the help of British colonialism and the resultant forced expulsion of about 80 percent of the Palestinian people and the destruction of their homes, villages and towns has ushered in a new geo-political core deemed by US imperialism as central to its global hegemony. Since then, the US with the help of Israel made sure that no Arab country will be allowed to be independent or sovereign. Any attempt at defying imperialist dictates, as history has shown us in Iraq, Libya, Yemen and today Syria, was met with US direct and indirect force, violence and destruction. This discussion deals with some of the issues raised here. It will pay special attention to the US role and the Russian presence in Syria.

A panel discussion with Speakers:

Professor Nahla Abdo
Department of Sociology and Anthropology
Carleton University

Professor Peter Gose
Department of Sociology and Anthropology
Carleton University

Dr. Phillip Leech-Ngo
Gordon F. Henderson Post-doctoral Fellow
Human Rights Research and Education Centre