Collecting evidence to support this claim has not been an easy task. Two main challenges are the ongoing upheaval of war on the one hand and widespread propaganda on the other.

There are around 2.5 million Syrian children displaced by the war living in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt. Host countries have taken steps to increase school enrollment, such as offering free public education and introducing ‘second shifts’ in the afternoons to accommodate more children. Yet barriers such as onerous documentation requirements, language difficulties and a lack of affordable transportation are continuing to keep children out of the classroom, according to HRW.

Neither Iran nor Hezbollah has ever deterred or even spoke about deterring Israel on behalf of Syria. Therefore, while Israel is focusing on degrading the ‘axis of resistance’ threat on its Syrian border, its adversaries are drawing red lines that once crossed could lead to an all-out war. The risk of this happening can be contained if both parties at least agree not to cross the other’s red lines. But if the situation escalates, as the recent case of south-western Syria suggests it might, international mediation – like the Russian one – will be needed to prevent a war.