Syrian Rebels Advancing

The Syrian civil war drags on, but perhaps there is some movement toward an eventual resolution:

In the past week, the rebels have seized five important military facilities in the north, the east and near the capital, Damascus, capturing sizable quantities of weaponry, further isolating remaining government positions and freeing up opposition fighters to focus on attacking Assad’s forces.

These are not big victories, but

Taken together, however, the gains underscore the steadily growing effectiveness of the rebel force and the accelerating erosion of what had once been one of the region’s most powerful armies, now severely depleted and on the defensive along almost all of the country’s many battlefronts.

Each time they seize a base, the rebels capture more heavy weapons, exclude the government from another part of the country, and raise their confidence. Some of the experts cited in the Post think the government might be on the edge of collapse, while others expect the war to drag on for a long time yet.