All Policy Analysis by Jeffrey White

Damascus faces a long decline unless major factors change relating to regime strategy, additional resources from allies, or a collapse in rebel unity of effort.

Given the major setbacks the regime has suffered over the past week, now is a good time to apply maximum pressure on Assad, whether to force genuine diplomatic negotiations or accelerate a full military defeat.

Whether ISIS holds on in Yarmouk or not, its southward expansion is a further sign that fighting the group in Iraq and eastern Syria will not be enough.

Although not the catastrophe it could have been, the defeat holds major implications for the regime's strategy in Idlib province, its willingness to hold precarious positions elsewhere in Syria, and its dependence on foreign forces.

The regime is entirely pragmatic when choosing what groups to fight with or against, making it an unreliable prospective coalition ally, at best, against the self-styled Islamic State.

The regime's patient, attrition-based approach to ongoing operations near Damascus and Aleppo shows how it could still win the war even without spectacular battlefield victories.

Current expectations that the two sides can manage escalation may not hold true, and a new war would be more intense and destructive than in 2006.

The administration needs to make sure that its imminent creation of a new rebel force is conducted with clear political goals, a concrete military strategy, and due consideration of likely operational contingencies.

Absent more robust international intervention, the regime remains essentially unopposed in the air, allowing it to continue pursuing its strategic objectives and killing civilians with relative impunity.

The moderate rebel force currently envisioned by Washington would take far too long to arrive on the battlefield and could be easy prey for ISIS and Assad.

The latest fighting exposed the group's military improvements and weaknesses alike, and Hamas members will study the lessons learned in preparation for future confrontations with Israel.