When Syria’s rebels captured Aleppo late last week, it sent tremors through the regime of Bashar al-Assad. Those tremors have now become an earthquake. 

Many observers thought that capturing Hama, a city more than 130km (80 miles) south of Aleppo, would be a step too far for the jihadist-led rebels. They predicted that the Assad regime forces would be able to regroup and stop their fighters before they reached its gates.