Spillover from the Conflict in Syria

Certain Factors Contribute Directly to the Spread of Violence

• External military support, large numbers of refugees, and the fragility of neighboring states are factors that contribute directly to the spread of violence from civil war and insurgency.
• Additional factors are ethnic ties, access to open media, perceived uncertainty and government overreaction by neighbors, timing and effectiveness of intervention, and government and insurgent capabilities.

Neighboring States Will Be Affected Differently

• Turkey has been and will continue to be significantly affected by the ongoing civil war in Syria. The enormous number of Syrian refugees alone will impose many financial and governance challenges. However, the prospects for the spillover of significant armed conflict are limited.
• Lebanon's particularly high risk of conflict spillover stems from its crippled government, division among its internal security forces, and continued external/Iranian support to Hizbollah. As the Syrian opposition continues to battle supporters of Assad both in Syria and in Lebanon, the propensity for conflict to spill over will remain high and drag Lebanon closer into a full-blown regional conflict.
• Iraq's political and religious rifts are segregating people across the same sectarian lines that now define the main political agendas of combatants in Syria. Both Sunnis and Shia in Iraq are waiting to see how events might unfold in Syria. Both of these groups perceive the end state of the Syrian conflict as one that could play a major role in shaping Iraq's political future.
• The Syrian conflict is wearing on the delicate political, economic, and social fabric of Jordan. The growing refugee population along the border puts excessive pressure on already scarce water supplies and on civilian and security infrastructure. But the radicalization of Syrian youth in Jordanian refugee camps and the spread of extremist ideas are the primary causes for concern.