Max Fisher: “The violence in Syria has worsened dramatically and consistently since August. Shadia’s story, typical of late summer and early fall violence there, was documented in a report by Human Rights Watch, one of several human rights reports that tell many such stories from the government’s crackdown against civilians, often whether they are protesters or not. Children have increasingly come under fire in this violence. Though many of them are incidental victims like Shadia’s son, the tactics that security forces employ throughout the country put children at incredible risk. At best, the regime may be indifferent to their young victims; at worst, they may be deliberately choosing an approach that increases the likelihood that its bullets find their way to young boys and girls. But, more and more, the stories from Syria describe security forces actively singling out children, often for torture or worse.”