All Policy Analysis by Andrew J. Tabler

Many options for direct military action in Syria have been on the table, ranging from token strikes with small numbers of weapons to much broader operations such as attacks on leadership targets or the imposition of no-fly and no-drive zones. In addition, the United States could respond indirectly by providing

Members of the Syrian opposition are correct in describing Alawite army general Ali Habib Mahmoud's "defection" to Turkey over the past few days as a "blow to the morale" of the Assad regime. He is the most prominent military official to leave Syria since the July 2012 departure of Brig

Achieving U.S. objectives in Syria would help pressure Tehran into making hard choices regarding both the Assad regime and the Iranian nuclear program.

Experts discuss the nature and capabilities of Syria's various rebel groups and assess U.S. options for shifting the strategic landscape beyond punitive strikes.

Published in conjunction with PolicyWatch 2122, this graphic depicts the hierarchical structure of the Syrian regime.

The regime's cadres have held together through two years of war, and they will likely continue doing so unless Washington and its allies present them with a stark choice: leave and live, or stay and die.

U.S. backsliding on redlines regarding Syrian chemical weapons only encourages the Assad regime to make choices that increase the likelihood of direct U.S. intervention.

If the regime wins, as seems increasingly likely, post-war Syria will be a more brutal and anarchic place than ever before.

On June 28, 2013, Andrew J. Tabler and Marc Lynch participated in a Policy Forum debate at The Washington Institute. Mr. Tabler is a senior fellow in the Institute's Program on Arab Politics and author of the recent Foreign Affairs article "Syria's Collapse and How Washington Can Stop It." Dr