To be sure, a no-fly zone over Syria would not be a simple undertaking: substantial resources would be required, and, given the regime’s military capabilities, it would not be a risk-free operation. Yet it was accomplished for more than a decade in neighboring Iraq to keep Saddam Hussein from attacking segments of his own population, so we know that it can be done in Syria as well.
尽管军事干预叙利亚不可能实现，但设置禁飞区还是可行的。平心而论，在叙利亚上空设置禁飞区不是个简单的任务：要求投入很大的资源，而且由于巴沙尔政权军力雄厚，因此设置禁飞区绝不是没有风险的。但在叙利亚的邻国伊拉克，禁飞区就被成功设置过，保护了萨达姆·侯赛因统治下的伊拉克人民在十年时间里免受空袭。由此可知，叙利亚也可以有禁飞区。