How the U.S. Lost the War in Syria to Russia and Iran

When the U.S. and its allies finally began their offensive to defeat the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) in the eastern Syrian province of Deir Ezzor in August 2017, the Syrian battlefield looked very different to when the conflict began in 2011.

Back then, President Barack Obama came out in support of rebels trying to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and, in 2012, began arming them. In the years since, America's friends and foes have shifted, however, and its leading rival, Russia, stepped in to help Syrian President Bashar al-Assad quell a nationwide rebellion and reclaim the lion's share of his country.

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