The string of confrontations between groups from the Syrian opposition and the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) that began in 2014 have shaped much of the current debate on international Middle East Policy. This paper discusses the reasons and conditions that led to the confrontation. It considers the possible impacts of these confrontations given the expectations of the conflict’s contributing parties: the Islamic Front, the al-Nusra front, the Army of Mujahideen, and the Syria Revolutionaries. The analysis takes into consideration other factors like the position of the Syrian regime and its role in the confrontation, as well as the impact of external factors on regime decisions. The paper analyzes the extent of convergence of interests between ISIL and the regime, the distraction the regime faced when groups from the Syrian opposition were united to fight ISIL to ‘take it out of the equation.’ This weakened the story told by the regime about the revolution, a narrative that called it a Salafi conspiracy targeting its secularism and tolerance.