I read the article and thought almost exactly the same thing you did...damning praise. But either way you slice it, innocents will die. So even with the best of intentions and agreements abroad, even from the very people involved...lives will be lost.
It's such a hoot to know, that one crazy egomaniac's inability to relinquish power will kill thousands, perhaps 10's of thousands. Life, what a shitcan.
One can only consider the number of dead if the coalition did nothing.