An unhappy anniversary: Why the end of Bashar al-Assad is as far away as ever – and how Syria’s rebels lost the plot - Patrick Cockburn
▻http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/an-unhappy-anniversary-why-the-end-of-bashar-alassad-is-as-far-away-a
Today marks three years since Syrians rose up against their President. In the time since then, unwavering support for the status quo from Russia and Iran, the unwillingness of the West to intervene, and the increasing disarray of the anti-government factions have all combined to ensure that they may never succeed, writes Patrick Cockburn