Bashar al-Assad does not want to let a calamity go to waste

TIMINGiseverything after a disaster. For aid workers the first 72 hours are crucial, as injury, thirst and the elements conspire to kill survivors. Beyond that mark, their odds of rescue drop sharply. For autocrats hoping a disaster will ease their international isolation, however, the timeline is a bit more forgiving.The rebel-held enclave in north-west Syria was hit hard by this month’s earthquakes. On February 13th the United Nations said that Bashar al-Assad had agreed to ease the passage of aid into the region. His decision, a full week after the quakes, came too late for those trapped under the rubble for want of fuel and heavy machinery: they were already dead.