The Turkish aid request at the UN is about to go over with that body just as well as would a bad trick cigar, because neither Russia nor China at the Security Council level will sign off on anything that remotely smells like an "RTP" resolution (Responsibility to Protect), because of what happened with Libya.

It has been reported that British Special Forces are directing the military activities of the rebels in Syria, and that Western and Israeli weapons are being provided to the rebels here. Look for more of the same, in light of the fact that NATO is going to be cautious about being seen going head to head with Russia, which has warned very sternly about any outside intervention in Syria.

What we are most likely to see, then, is a slow-motion bloodbath of a civil war, where ultimately, Assad either resigns, or is removed from office.

Iran is going to be reluctant to move against an "internal unrest" against Syria, and therefore will not be supplying troops to assist in quelling that unrest. To date, there have been no verifiable reports of Iranian troop movements inside Syria, only unsourced reports of technical assistance to the Assad government.

As part of an attempt its mission to spread its influence across the Middle East, Tehran is also examining ways of helping Shia populations in Bahrain and Yemen rising up against their rulers. "We believe that Iran is materially assisting the Syrian government in its efforts to suppress their own people," an Obama administration official told the Wall Street Journal. Assistance has included equipment and technical advice on blocking and monitoring communication between dissidents, and drew on the Iranian authorities' own experience of putting down an uprising that followed the June 2009 disputed election.