Iran is still grappling with the fallout from the fall of the Assad regime. It invested heavily in Assad’s rule in Damascus and likely expected that it would continue for many years. However, Assad fell from power on December 8.

Israel is celebrating the fall of Assad because it breaks the noose that Iran had been patiently tightening around Israel’s borders in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria. Tehran’s pincer is now broken and rendered useless. From the point of view of Israel’s wider conflict with the Islamic Republic, the collapse of Assad’s regime is a strategic victory.

For Iranians, the collapse of the Assad regime is significant because Syria has been a cornerstone of Tehran's regional strategy.

One of Israel's goals in its campaign in the Gaza Strip has been to also weaken Iran. The fall of the Syrian dictator suggests the strategy is paying off. This could open up new options for the U.S.

The first commercial flight since the ouster of president Bashar al-Assad took off from Damascus airport on Wednesday, offering Syrians a glimmer of hope after years of war and decades of oppression.The country's new rulers have sought to keep its institutions going and,

US Strikes Amplify Efforts Against ISIS Threat in Syria Amid a turbulent power vacuum in Syria, the United States has ramped up its military operations against Isis, aiming to thwart the group’s resurgence.