Earlier this year things had been going rather well, militarily and politically, for Syria's eternally fractious opposition and its rebel allies. Western governments had promised to channel more aid to the new Syrian National Coalition, an umbrella group in exile, for passing on to fighters battling Bashar Assad's regime on the ground. Moaz al-Khatib, the coalition's head, had emerged as a cannier and more popular politician than his predecessors seeking to unite Syria's opposition. Yet on March 24th it was thrown into disarray when Mr Khatib resigned.
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