Will Syrian opposition benefit from recent Gulf detente?

The Gulf reconciliation has sparked controversy in the opposition circles of northwestern Syria over its expected positive effects on the Syrian revolution and opposition.
Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan al-Saud holds a press conferece at the end of the 41st Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit, in the city of al-Ula in northwestern Saudi Arabia on January 5, 2021. - Gulf leaders signed a "solidarity and stability" deal after the leaders of Saudi Arabia and Qatar publicly embraced, bringing Doha back into the regional fold after a three-year rift. (Photo by FAYEZ NURELDINE / AFP) (Photo by FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images)
Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud holds a press conferece at the end of the 41st Gulf Cooperation Council summit, Al-Ula, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 5, 2021. - Fayez Nureldine/AFP via Getty Images
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Khaled al-Khateb
@khaleedalkhteb
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ALEPPO, Syria — On the wall of a destroyed building in the countryside of Idlib, in northwest Syria, which is under the control of the Syrian opposition, Syrian artist Aziz Asmar painted a Saudi and Qatari shaking hands.

At the top of the painting, Asmar wrote in English, “The blood can never become water.”

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