World press on Syrian crisis (January 11, 2013)

The Jerusalem Post published an article by Joshua Jacobs headlined 'Will the US stop helping al-Qaida in Syria?' "One of the oldest maxims in history is “The enemy of my enemy is my friend, ” the article begins. "An embattled people will seek help from wherever it can be found. It is perhaps one of the simplest and most basic rules humanity has produced. Yet as we enter the 19th month of the Syrian revolution, it is a rule that decision makers in Washington seem frustratingly ignorant of."

"That the Syrian revolution, which has smoldered for almost two years and consumed the lives of nearly 30,000 people, has attracted the attention of al- Qaida and affiliated Islamists groups should come has no surprise – and we have only ourselves to blame," the author writes.

"With the FSA failing to win control of the field, and with Syrian cities like Hama and Idlib suffering from incessant siege and assault, Islamist groups found fertile ground to enter the fray. These radical fighters have proven critical in buttressing the morale of the resistance movement," the article reads.

"Though relatively small in number compared to the dispersed battalions of the FSA, they have inflicted heavy casualties on the Syrian military, mostly in rural ambushes and bombings. As a result of their high-profile activities and energetic presence on the ground they have established a valuable political space for themselves, one which they continue to enlarge," the author writes.

"That final point is what should concern Washington. There is a definite expiration date on involvement. The longer the US waits, the more popular and powerful alternatives like al- Qaida will become. At some point, as this conflict rages on they will become a permanent fixture in the political mix, and perhaps even become the resistance itself."

"Many now agree that Bashar Assad is likely to fall, one way or another. Whether or not it is the Syrian tricolor or the black flag of al-Qaida that is rung up in Damascus, is in fact entirely up to the United States,"  the author concludes.