Syria: A Conflict Explored (Or Is It?)

Though the horror that is Syria continues to drag on without end, that has not prevented the Imperial War Museum from holding an exhibition on the conflict. It opens with these wise and cautious words: we have tried in this exhibition to offer a balanced viewpoint on a bitter conflict for which there seems no end in sight. Alas its meagreness means that no viewpoint makes more than the most cursory of appearances. The few objects include: a child's lifejacket retrieved from the island of Chios; Several Western and Middle Eastern newspapers reporting on ISIS executions; and some outrageously kitsch Putin-Assad china. Whatever garbled message these erratic and sparse displays are attempting to make eludes me, though they certianly don't offer an in-depth analysis of the turmoil. In the next room a film provides a more thorough examination of Syria's recent history and descent into violence, but focussing on this defeats the purpose of mounting an exhibition in the first place. We might as well just watch it from home. One redeeming feature is the price: free admission. But unless you have a passion for realpolitik commemorative plates, don't bother coming.