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Source: https://www.thedailybeast.com/russia-is-turning-against-iranand-assadin-syria
In Syria, Russia Is Turning Against Iran and Assad
(Daily Beast) Jeremy Hodge - Assad, members of his family, and his Alawite clansmen enjoy close bonds to the regime in Tehran and to Iranian-backed militias in Syria. As long as Assad's relatives continue to function as a mafia and give free rein to Iranian troops using Syria as a base of operations to threaten Israel and plan attacks against U.S. troops in Iraq, those countries likely to foot the bill for Syrian reconstruction - the nations of Europe and the Gulf - are unlikely to come up with the cash. James Jeffrey, the U.S. special envoy for the Coalition to Defeat ISIS, said Thursday, "You find Assad has nothing but thugs around him, and they don't sell well either in the Arab world or in Europe. We have heard repeatedly from Russians we take as credible that they understand how bad Assad is." Just one week ago, Russian state media unleashed a slew of reports and editorials targeting Assad, portraying him as hopelessly corrupt and unfit to govern, and suggesting the time had come to replace him with a new leader.