Assad may believe that grip on power is unshakable.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said IS militants attacked Syrian army checkpoints around the village of Maadan.
Recent fighting in southern Syria spells misfortune for locals and possibly increased tensions with Syria's neighbors.
"The moment I heard that my kids were dead, I was holding a six-month-old baby that had just been killed in Adawiya. So, I was imagining what had happened to my kids," said a former Syrian rebel.
It is the first visit by a senior Syrian diplomat to the kingdom in more than a decade, following an agreement between Riyadh and Damascus to re-establish ties and reopen their embassies.
Uncertain future faces millions as they find they cannot move easily, can’t return to Syria and can’t flee as refugees.
The northwest, one of the region's most badly affected by the earthquake that hit Syria and Turkey, is controlled by insurgents.
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