Fall of Sheikh Maskin to government forces cuts off rebel supply routes while securing regime's hold on Deraa province.
Rami Khouri, from the American University of Beirut, told Al Jazeera that military help from Russia, Iran, and Hezbollah over the past year had turned the tide for government forces.
"Without these three support groups, the Syrian government would probably have vanished because they were really in bad shape about a year ago," said Khouri.
"There's a shifting pattern of control on the ground and it's important because when the [peace] talks go ahead in Geneva, and if they achieve ceasefires, who controls more land will gain more political, economic, and humanitarian power."
Juan Cole, a Middle East analyst at the University of Michigan, told Al Jazeera that recent gains by government forces in Syria's south were significant, considering rebels once controlled about 70 percent of Deraa province.
Cole also underscored Russia's role in the advance.
"Largely because of Russian air intervention, the rebels are being scattered. Things have just turned around 180 degrees for the regime since the Russians came in … Now there is a significant reversal that will affect the rebels' logistics," said Cole.
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/...key-southern-town-rebels-160126040829177.html
