The Obama Administration is portraying the planned attacks on the Assad government as a key move that everyone in the region supports, but even among Syrian rebels, the theoretical beneficiaries of the attack, there is a major split on whether they want it or not.
Al-Qaeda factions remain opposed to US involvement, fearing the US will attack them too, but the real surprise is that the so-called “moderates” that the administration is loudly supporting are concerned too.
Rebel officials are expressing hope that a US attack will quickly escalate into a full-scale ground invasion, particularly if Congress endorses the strikes. The limited actions the administration has insisted are the plan, however, are met with opposition there too, fearing that it will garner sympathy for the Assad government and provoke retaliation against their forces as a US proxy.
That position will sit well with Congressional hawks, who want to escalate at any rate. The rebel concerns underscore the reality, however, that US intervention is going to provoke more violence in the nation, and that at the end of the day, they only support that worsening violence if they think it benefits them.