Will Syria Be Swept Up by the Winds of Change?

All eyes are on Syria, where President Bashar al-Assad is determined to hold on to power despite the resignation of his cabinet and with protests expected again tomorrow after Friday prayers. In a major speech to the nation yesterday, Assad disappointed expectations that he would repeal repressive emergency laws that have been in place for nearly 50 years. The US has been fairly moderate in its comments on Syria and its violent crackdown on protesters. Israel and Syria are considered the "best" of enemies, with no violence on their shared border for decades. Will Assad respond with another bloody crackdown? But will he be able to hold off the kind of protests that have unseated other leaders in the Arab world? What would a new regime in Syria look like?