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Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=5549
Assad's Standing in Syria on the Eve of U.S. Action
(Israel Hayom) Dore Gold - Assad's decision to use chemical weapons last week was because, to a large extent, he is already feeling that his back is against the wall. After all, he used his chemical arsenal against a rebel stronghold not in some remote region but right outside of Damascus, which could have become the springboard for a final offensive against the regime. The fact that Assad and his Iranian allies have not been able to win the war, despite all the outside assistance they have received to date, indicates that Assad's situation must be much worse than it seems on the outside. If Assad is indeed weaker than anyone thought and his chemical attack was more an act of desperation rather than a statement of self-confidence, then U.S. military action could potentially accelerate the end of his regime. While Iran pours Shiite militias into Syria, rival Sunni jihadist forces have built up their military capacity, as well. In the years ahead, Syria could well become a far more dangerous sanctuary for jihadist organizations than Afghanistan ever was. Syria, after all, is situated on the Mediterranean, right across from Europe. The real danger from doing nothing about Assad's chemical attack is that it signals that there are no boundaries in modern war that the Great Powers insist on. Any tolerance of a Syrian chemical strike also lowers the international barriers against the use of biological and nuclear weapons. The writer, a former Israeli UN ambassador, is president of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs.