Furthermore, if the ceasefire held, it would facilitate economic reconstruction, while enabling moderate political actors and civil society to win back some power from the extremists – a shift that ordinary Syrians would welcome. Indeed, people in jihadist-controlled areas are deeply unhappy with Al Qaeda thugs terrorizing them and trying to enforce their version of Islamic mores – so much so that the Assad regime increasingly appears to be a better alternative to continued warfare or an Al Qaeda takeover.