Syrian Uprising Becoming Shiite-Sunni Conflict

Yesterday's Christian Science Monitor reports that as the fighting goes on in Syria, the conflict is moving from a popular uprising to a confrontation between Sunnis and Shiites, explaining:

The regime’s reliance on Alawite militiamen, known as the Shabiha, to help suppress the 10-month uprising is mirrored by elements of the armed rebel forces rallying around their Sunni identity through religious and sectarian motifs and language. The minority Alawite sect draws upon some Shiite traditions and is considered heretical by conservative Sunnis.

Shiite Iran and Hezbollah support the Alawites.