Dubbing My Way

Syria finds means of financial survival

'Almost two years after the Syrian uprising began, Damascus is funding its state structures and war machine thanks to assistance from Moscow and Tehran, dwindling commodity exports and taxes – and the opportunities the war economy offers to make and seize cash.
“You can see pressure building up on the regime but you don’t actually get to the collapse,” said David Butter, a Middle East finance specialist at Chatham House, the London-based think-tank. “There is enough circulation in parts of the economy to keep things going.” '

Central Damascus slowly succumbs to war

"It was once thought that puncturing the bubble of normalcy in Damascus would strengthen opposition to the regime. But increasingly armed rebels, often referred to as the Free Syrian Army (FSA), are accused of looting and acting with disregard for the populations they are supposed to be fighting for."