The White House says it is only a matter of time before the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad comes to an end.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said Wednesday, December 21, that fear is the only thing holding the Syrian government together. He said governments based on fear are always doomed.

Carney noted that military defections are on the rise, foreign diplomats are leaving their posts and supporting the opposition, and that some traditional Syrian allies, including the Arab League and Turkey, have turned against it. Carney also said international sanctions are putting Syria under financial duress.

Russia's UN ambassador, Vitaly Churkin, says the council will hold a second round of negotiations Thursday to “build consensus” on a Russian-sponsored draft resolution on Syria. Also Thursday, an advance team of Arab League observers is scheduled to arrive in Syria to prepare for the deployment of hundreds of monitors, VOA News reported.

Syria agreed to allow the observers into the country under global pressure to stop the bloody crackdown on anti-government protesters.

The United Nations says at least 5,000 people have been killed during the nine-month uprising against the government of President Bashar al-Assad. Syrian authorities blame the violence on “armed terrorist groups.”