The past year, the situation in Syria has become the world's most severe humanitarian crisis, with tens of thousands of casualties and more than 8 million people uprooted from their homes. Meanwhile Syria's economy lies in ruins, with over 45 percent unemployment and a 40 percent fall in GDP since the start of the conflict. Syria's modest development gains over the past 12 to 15 years have been wiped out, while the country has recorded the largest fall in the Global Peace Index.
Despite the grim picture, recent developments have renewed the possibility of a compromise. The vast majority of opposition forces now appreciate that the Islamic State of Iraq and Sham (ISIS) – also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) – and other extremist groups have done more harm than good to their cause. At the same time, those entrusted with the difficult task of day-to-day governance in large swaths of newly liberated areas are already negotiating with the Assad regime on a daily basis in order to provide water, electricity, and other basic services to an increasingly demanding population.
The full article originially appears in The Christian Science Monitor.