Perhaps the worst aspect of what the protest movement in Syria is facing is the fact that the daily killing of protesters has turned into a routine matter. The lives being lost at the hands of government forces have turned into numbers being repeated on news reports, while awaiting the similar numbers tomorrow will bring – without this great number of victims falling to the machine of repression arousing any feelings towards the necessity of putting a stop to the humanitarian and social tragedy resulting from the continued killing, above all else, and without this creating political momentum, whether internally or from abroad. The many pleas from abroad to stop resorting to force in confronting the Syrian opposition have had no effect whatsoever on the authorities' decision to adopt killing as their sole response to demonstrators. Indeed, all of the official announcements about reform have failed to convince anyone, including those who announced them, as one of the basics of reform and dialogue would mean to stop the killing and withdraw military and security forces from the streets – which so far has not happened, even if under the pretext of confronting “armed gangs”. Moreover, the defection of members of the military from the army, and their announcing that they will begin to carry out operations against government forces, provides a justification for military campaigns against entire areas, even if it expresses increased dissatisfaction with dragging soldiers into killing civilians, as well as taking sides with the demands of the opposition. The Syrian crisis entering the phase of routine killing is expressive of the political predicament everyone has reached. In other words, all parties have lost the ability to reinterpret the elements of the crisis and the nature of the confrontation, as well as the ability to affect its developments. With paralysis at the Security Council, as a result of the stances taken by Russia and China, which have contributed to reinforcing the notion of the security solution for the Syrian regime, unilateral measures have reached their utmost extent, in terms of sanctions and political pressure. Moreover, the stance taken by Turkey seems to have suddenly become lukewarm, despite the refrain of the necessity of making serious reforms being repeated. Even the solution suggested by the Arab League is not expected to go beyond a few meetings with Syrian officials, in view of its lack of any serious means of pressure, not to mention Damascus's conviction that it is of no use and its rejection of its elements calling for putting a stop to the killing and moving towards a political solution. In this sense, and in the absence of any political perspective, the routine of killing becomes synonymous with the routine of going around in a vicious circle with regard to the solution. Perhaps Syrian authorities are wagering on such routine in order to exclude a political solution and exhaust the protesters' ability to act by causing the greatest possible number of casualties in their ranks, and by considering that exhausting them alone will resolve their movement. Indeed, at a time when the victims have become numbers in news reports, there is a wager on their increasing number becoming a means to pressure the protesters, so as for avoiding to be killed to be only by submitting to the regime's decisions. Many do not hesitate, from within the regime or from among its allies, to repeatedly note the decreasing number of participants in demonstrations, reaching the conclusion that the security solution has begun to bear fruit. Yet such a wager is clashing every day with the daily routine killing, which means that the protesters have not yet been convinced to submit, and that they have gone beyond this stage towards daily insistence on taking to the streets and raising their demands. The authorities increasing pressure on them, whether by taking measures or by confronting them with violence, has had no effect, except on the rate of participation in some areas. Yet such a drop in the rate at the same time expresses clinging more strongly to their demands, and refusing to return to submission, as it had been in the past.
