In 2011, hundreds of thousands of Syrians marched peacefully to demand democratic reforms. Within months, repression forced them to take arms and set up their own institutions. Two years later, the inclusive nature of the opposition had collapsed, and the PKK and radical jihadist groups rose to prominence. In just a few years, Syria turned into a full-scale civil war involving major regional and world powers. How has the war affected Syrian society? How does the fragmentation of Syria transform social and sectarian hierarchies? How does the war economy work in a country divided between the regime, the insurgency, the PKK, and the Islamic State? Written by authors who have previously worked on the Iraqi, Afghan, Kurd, Libyan, and Congolese armed conflicts, this book includes extensive interviews and direct observations.

Part I. Genesis of a revolution -- The al-Assad system -- A revolution of anonyms -- The path to civil war -- Part II. Revolutionary institutions -- The building of military capital -- Administering the revolution -- Mobilization outside Syria -- Part III. The fragmentation of the insurrection -- The crisis internationalizes -- The Kurds and the PKK -- The Islamization of the insurgency -- The caliphate -- Part IV. A society at war -- The variations of social capital -- The economy for war -- New identity regimes -- Conclusions.