The Free Syrian Army's Restructuring Attracts Foreign Aid

Over the past two years, several factors have degraded the moderate Free Syrian Army as a fighting force. Pressured by a resurgent regime, lacking adequate foreign support, facing a persistent jihadist threat and long-eclipsed by the growing power of the Salafist Islamic Front, the Free Syrian Army has been driven to near extinction as a cohesive fighting group. In an effort to revitalize its forces, the group is comprehensively reorganizing, revamping its command structure in the process. As they restructure, the rebels are receiving their largest boost yet from the United States and the Gulf Cooperation Council.

Frustrated by the lack of progress in the Geneva talks and alarmed at the rapid rise of jihadist and Salafist forces in Syria, the United States appears set to bolster its aid to the Free Syrian Army, which it perceives as the only viable rebel option left in an increasingly intractable conflict. In boosting support for the Free Syrian Army, Washington hopes to coerce the Syrian regime — and by extension its Iranian benefactor — into making substantial concessions in peace talks while retaining some control over Gulf Cooperation Council aid to the rebels, specifically to prevent the Gulf countries from channeling increased aid to the Salafist Islamic Front.