ASSESSMENTS

For Syria, No Clear View of the Future

Nov 22, 2017 | 09:08 GMT

After almost four years, the Islamic State in Syria has been destroyed as a conventional fighting force.

A bus belonging to the Islamic State police sits in the recently freed town of al-Mayadeen in Syria. The extremist group has been driven from practically all significant urban terrain.

(STRINGER/AFP/Getty Images)

Highlights

The Islamic State is finally on its very last legs as a conventional force in Syria, having lost all its urban terrain and been heavily crippled by casualties.
Still, the demise of the Islamic State in Syria will not, on its own, be enough to pave the way to a settlement of the conflict there.
Syria's political process remains polarized, and ongoing negotiations are unlikely to result in significant movement toward peace.

The Islamic State is crumbling in Syria, but the country is still facing a murky future. The extremist group is finally on its very last legs as a conventional force there, after almost four years of being pummeled from the air and on the ground. Driven from practically all significant urban terrain and crippled by heavy casualties, it has lost its ability to seize and hold territory in the face of the large number of forces arrayed against it. And while the group has dominated the attention of the key regional and international actors in the area, its downfall raises the question: What comes next for Syria?...

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