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Assad Loyalists Are Turning on Syria's Government as Living Standards Deteriorate
(Washington Post) Liz Sly - Syrians who remained loyal to President Assad throughout the past eight years of war are increasingly expressing discontent with his government as living standards deteriorate even as the conflict winds down. An estimated 89% of the population is living in poverty and dependent on international food handouts, according to the UN. But for the first time, those living in the pro-government areas are experiencing harsh deprivations, including in Damascus. Acute shortages of fuel, cooking gas and electricity have left citizens shivering in darkness through an unusually cold winter, while thousands of men who fought on the front lines are returning home without hope of finding jobs.