ABSTRACT
The Assad regime made further substantial territorial gains in the former rebel strongholds of Eastern Ghouta and areas of southwestern Syria, including Daraa province, known as the birthplace of the revolution. The Free Syrian Army, one of the largest groups, was formed primarily by defectors from the regime’s Syrian Arab Army. The Syrian Arab Army, under the command of President Bashar al-Assad’s government, has been fighting to defend areas under its control and retake rebel-held areas since the conflict began in 2011. Hizbullah, originally founded with Iranian backing in 1982 to resist the Israeli occupation of Lebanon, has likely been involved in the Syrian conflict since 2011. Russia’s military involvement in Syria in support of the regime began in 2015 and has been key to the regime’s widespread territorial gains since. The underlying cause of the conflict lies in the deeply rooted opposition to the Assad regime in Syria, due to widespread human-rights abuses and entrenched economic and social inequalities.
