War in Syria

War in Syria

There have been many arguments as to the United Sates bombing Syria. Will this be a just war? Do we have to bomb them? Will chemical bombs be involved? From a Catholic point of view, there are 6 conditions that have to be met to qualify a war as just. Most people don't see how military intervention is morally justified if we consider other factors as well. This decision to bomb Syria started when rebels and Western governments accused pro-Assad forces of using chemical weapons in an attack that killed more than 300 people near Damascus. The Syrian government blamed the rebels. President Barack Obama drew the red line there and said a "limited" strike would be needed to degrade Damascus' chemical weapons capability, even though Russia and China warned against any attack on Syria.

The article that we read in class had an abundant of information about what moral theologians said about getting involved in Syria. Most moralists don't see how military intervention is morally justified if we take into consideration other key points. In the article, it states that, "Under the just war, war is the last resort after diplomatic and other means have failed. Many moralists do not believe all other options have been exhausted in Syria (National Catholic Reporter)." Using my information from this article and our textbook I have come to a conclusion that this war is not a just war and that chemical bombs my not be the right answer that we are looking for. I don't believe that the United States have tried any other options to but an end to this Syrian civil war. A war is only just and permissible when it meets strict criteria in protecting citizens from an unjust aggressor.

What are the qualifications for a just war? According to the textbook, First, you must have a just cause, which means that you are using war to prevent or correct a grave public evil. Also, you must have comparative justice, which means that the good that will come from the war will greatly outweigh the death toll. Third, you would need legitimate authority, where constituted public authority may use deadly force or wage war. Plus, a probability of success, which means that using chemical bombs or weapons are required to achieve success. Along with that, you would need proportionality. This means that the overall destruction from the use of force must be outweighed by the good to be achieved. Lastly, this must be a last resort. Forces may be used only after all other alternatives have been tried and failed. We must meet all of these qualifications to label the war in Syria a just war and sadly, they are all not met. This is not the last resort, and we are not sure about the comparative justice or the probability of success. According to our textbook, "The catholic teaching of a just war would be a war that is only just and permissible when it meets these 6 things in protecting citizens