A boost for Assad as the Syrian army makes gains against ISIS in eastern Syria

They are most likely to choose to preempt any further U.S.- backed advances by continuing to head east toward the Iraqi border, and to focus on securing main roads in and out of the country to assert Syria’s sovereignty over its borders, said Kamal Alam, an analyst with the London-based Royal United Services Institute. “This is a very significant victory,” he said. “It’s the heart of eastern Syria, the key crossroads to Iraq, and it really helps the confidence of the country.”