The ‘art of the possible’ in Deir ez-Zor – a weekly news review

Over the last fortnight, a limited but lethal insurgency has rocked
Deir ez-Zor - part of the Autonomous Administration of North and
East Syria and the last region to be liberated from ISIS. Now that
the immediate danger has been contained, it is important to look at
the combination of factors that allowed this to happen, from
political miscalculation and mismanagement to economic pressures,
and at the roles played by the Syrian regime and by the different
powers that attempt to direct Syria’s future to their own
advantage. This week’s review also looks at deadly political
machinations in Kirkuk, the Kurdish parties from Iran, and
solidarity from Sweden.