Assad and his gang have shot themselves in the foot time and time again. The sheer unspeakable brutality of the regime made it a priority and obligation to remove it and pushed other considerations down the list.
Things may get worse. Hear is how, early on in the uprising, anti-Assad Syrian Sufi, Shaykh Yaqoubi replied to a question regarding things getting worse:
Question:
“Is there any ease after this hardship or problems will increase till the advent of Imam Mahdi, enlighten us may Allah reward you with every good. Please make du’a for us; and how to be of the soldiers of the Mahdi, if we live till his time. And what is the way to attain true love for the Family of the Prophet not as a claim?”
Answer from Sh. Yaqoubi:
“Time is full of unrest and hardships; the Sufyani has not yet appeared and Allah is the one who knows; Imam Mahdi will emerge only after him; yet between the two, there are wide wildsin which the Jewish people would have power over the land of Syria, which is part of the job of the coming Sufyani. If I had the choice, I would have withdrawn from all public activities; but the dress of Shari’ah puts on us the obligation to support the oppressed and clarify the rulings, even if we know through the reality that what comes after is worse. Having knowledge of the Divine Decree to be should not prevent us from following the command of the Shari’ah; so long as Allah put us in the position of Fatwa, admonishment and guidance.”
The Shaykh also said:
“Remember these words, as we rarely express it in this clear way.”
When asked what to do in these times, the Shaykh answered:
“We live our life do our work as usual; practice jihad when it applies and enjoin good and forbid evil; knowing the above will help us having a vision and not being surprised when things get worse; while we always pray for the best.”
Shaykh Muhammad al-Yaqoubi on Imam Mahdi and the Sufyani « Journey of a Seeker Of Sacred Knowledge