Syrian leader Bashar-Al-Assad is a murderous dictator. An estimated 190,000 people have died in the clashes between Al-Assad and the rebel forces who want him out.

In early 2011, 15 school children protested the Al-Assad regime by spray painting anti-government graffiti on the walls of a local school. The children were arrested and tortured, which led to what at first were peaceful protests, calling for the children’s freedom.

The government responded angrily on March 18, 2011. The army opened fire on protesters, killing four. The next day, they shot another person at a victim’s funeral. Civilians were shocked about what was happening. Soon, the unrest spread to other parts of the country.

All the people of Syria wanted was greater freedom and better democracy, but Al-Assad made everything even worse. When government forces opened fire, the civilians demanded that he resign. He refused to step down. Then, the war began.

In 2013, the conflict grew even bigger as the government used deadly, indiscriminate weapons. They kidnapped and tortured people. By July 2013, more than 100,000 people had been killed in the conflict. On August 21, hundreds of civilians were killed in a chemical weapons attack. Al-Assad killed innocent children all because people wanted greater freedom.

When journalists ask children in Syria, “What are you eating?,” they’ll say grass. They have no shelter, no food — nothing. Children are dying over there, people. This is devastating.

This war needs to stop. The government is using chemical weapons against its own people. Assad is the most hateful and heartless dictator I have ever heard of.

As an American citizen, I don’t think we are helping enough. It’s like we’re letting a dog die in our backyard while we pretend not to see or hear it. The government should send more military aid and money to help the Syrian people fight.

When my cousins went to Turkey for vacation this summer, they were confronted with the horrors of Syrian civilians laying on the concrete, begging for money.

Al-Assad needs to be stopped. America — and the rest of the world — are doing nothing but watching.