Questions of autonomy, integration, participation, and administration are key to resolving Syria's many disputes among its many groups. Could a 1989 agreement for Lebanon show the way?
Damascus fell into a trap when it sent its troops racing south as fighting erupted between Druze and Bedouins. Why? Because in Israel's arc of fragmentation, Syria is the last piece of the puzzle.
'Look to the woman,' as the French say, for it is the woman that runs the household. Likewise, it is the state's administration that runs the ministries and achieves the objectives set by ministers.
When states are attacked, authority gravitates towards institutions capable of mobilising resources, enforcing discipline, and coordinating a military response
There are few examples of successful US regime-change operations in history. And without permanent ground troop presence, these wins can easily be reversed.
Cairo and Tehran have been at loggerheads since 1979, but the Iranian threat has always acted as a check on Israeli ambitions. If Iran is completely defeated, Israel will reign supreme.