The End of Assad? Syrian Rebels enter the outskirts of Aleppo for the first time since 2016

Well, given the precedent of what happened when Hussain in Iraq fell and Gaddafi in Libya, involving the same terrorist groups rampaging around, you'd be forgiven for not unpacking the bunting just yet.

Pogroms started. Telegram is flooded with videos of moderate rebels on rampage killing everyone they feel like.

Few months of this and Assad will be seen as benevolent dictator.

Isn't that still somewhat premature optimism though?

Across the Muslim world spanning sects and ethnicities there is still more sympathy for Palestinians than there is support for their genocide by Israel.

Israels destruction of Syrian assets suggests their intent to treat syrians in the future as they treat Palestinians today.

I think it suggests an intent to not leave powerful weaponry in the hands of a bunch of jihadis who have pledged to capture Jerusalem, Mecca and Medina and set up a caliphate spanning the area. I'm sure lessons have been learned after Afghanistan and everything that was left behind by the Americans

Two weeks ago Assad had enjoyed virtually unchallenged control of the majority of the country for several years.

Now he's fled to Moscow, jihadi rebels are in control, and Israel has basically annihilated all significant military assets of the entire Syrian armed forces.

It really is crazy to see all this unfold in a simple fortnight, the level and speed of complete collapse is staggering.

I am not one second saying Assad is a good guy or should still be in control, but a really uncertain future ahead for the country in terms of possible further fighting or the type of Government and rule coming down the line.

Good! The more destruction of Russian assets in Syria, the less available to kill Ukrainians. Keep up the good work!

yeah, nope.

there was and is no chance of gihadis capturing any of those cities, even with syrian/russian weaponry, never was.

so i think we can say the poster you replied to has the correct reasoning as to why israel is doing what it is doing.

remember israel is very happy to fund and arm gihadis when it suits them and their interests.

Assad would still be in power if it were not for Israel.

Israel were the ones who weakened both Iran and Hezbollah.

Well onced upon a time, the very existence of Jews was threatened…and since then they have built a state that refuses to accept even the slightest threat to their well being ever again. And while that might not be your opinion, it's Israels, and they're the ones that count. Bear in mind that Israel is surrounded by countries, most of whom wish and pray for the complete destruction of their state.

I agree, but there aren't many stating otherwise, that's the point.

I haven't come across anyone saying "Syria has returned to peace and tranquility" or "HTS will make an excellent government".

Every comment, every news piece, every report is painfully disclaiming that we don't know what's going to happen next, we don't know if we can trust any of the factions, things could get worse, etc.

Being relieved Assad is gone is not to be automatically confused with support for particular factions, or notions that Syria is "at peace" now, or that the future will automatically be better.

It's an important point to make.

We know that when things do go South (which is quite likely) that certain Assad supporters will be leaping to claim "egg on the face" of anyone who supported his downfall.

Disclaimer: Having followed this since 2011, I am delighted Assad is gone. He and his family were the singular cause of much of this. I am equally worried about the future for Syrians.

no, they have built a state that refuses to accept borders and the existence of other peoples or states surrounding them.
they claim nonsense about threats to their well being and survival when there are and never were any so as to play the eternal victim and justify their criminality.
israel's opinions only matter to american and some other western politicians, the publics of most of the western world seeing through the BS and seeing it for what it is.
no, most of the countries don't want the destruction of israel, they want israel to stop invading them and slaughtering their people and stealing parts of their territory cause a book said something.
while israel continues to do those things, then yes those countries will want that stopped, and if destruction is what it takes then that is what they would accept.

Did the taliban ever have ambitions for expansion?

Certainly the calipate types who went to Afghanistan did but the Taliban fought them too.

If the IDF operation was genocide then the Allied air raids on Germany in WW2 would've been genocide. The Hamas health ministry's death toll, if true, is only 2% of the Gaza Strip's population as of 7 October 2023.

One of the real problems for pro jihadi types out marching every Saturday is that they can't understand or accept that for right or wrong. The israelis are not going to accept being slaughtered raped and exterminated by their crackpot neighbours.

They place a value on themselves and their country that to a modern left wing middle class twat is unfathomable and smacks of the vulgar working-class.