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After the Ceasefire Collapse, What's Next in Syria?

(Israel Hayom) Eyal Zisser - With the collapse of the most recent cease-fire agreement in Syria, fighting has resumed, and even if a new deal is reached to stop the shooting, there is no doubt that it, too, will crumble like its predecessor. Evidently the warring parties in Syria still have the strength to continue fighting. It also appears they still have faith in victory, as well as international support and generous financial and military aid which allows them to carry on fighting. The Syrian regime is exhausted after nearly six years of fighting, and has few remaining soldiers it can still throw into the cauldron. The rebels enjoy the support of the local population in the battle zones, and like locusts they descend time and again on the regime's forces. The rebels, however, are also fatigued, as is the population that supports them. They have failed repeatedly to unify their ranks and produce a diplomatic and military leadership. The Syrian state headed by Assad has not collapsed, even if it has dwindled to one quarter of the country's territory, which is home to most of the population that still remains in the country. Meanwhile, the areas under rebel control are characterized by chaos and anarchy and the rebels have been unable to establish any sort of alternative governance. The writer, Vice Rector at Tel Aviv University, is former director of its Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies.
2016-09-23 00:00:00
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