'Assad has much more staying power than I expected!'

"... The Islamization of the Syrian oppositionis giving the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and its local affiliate, the Democratic Union Party (PYD), a new source of strength and local support.

The Muslim Brotherhood’s influence in the Syrian National Council (SNC) and Al-Nusra’s willingness to militarily target the PKK/PYD has helped reinforce the radical Kurdish nationalist group’s image as a defender of a secular Syrian state and Kurdish rights. This trend is occurring as moderate opposition groups fail to coalesce into a viable alternative distinct fromTurkish interests. Left unchallenged, the PKK/PYD will become increasingly difficult to extricate from Kurdish-populated territories ..."