NEO-OTTOMAN ASPIRATIONS: Turkey looks set to play an outsize role in shaping the new Syria after Assad. “In his interview with Al Hadath TV, Fidan said that Turkey has been sending messages from Western and regional countries to the new Syrian leadership in an effort to moderate HTS. The group formed as an affiliate of al-Qaida in 2011. Turkey, the United States and the United Nations Security Council have designated HTS as a terrorist organization. But since defeating Assad, the group has portrayed itself as more moderate and inclusive of other religions and minorities, with encouragement from the Turkish government.”

Does anybody buy that?