Al Jazeera's Zeina Khodr, reporting from Beirut, said:
Activists on the ground are reporting intense military activity in a number of restive neighbourhoods of the capital - notably Midan and Kfar Sousah. The government is making good on its promise to retailiate. They have pledged to wipe out what they call 'criminal gangs'. And the government says a large number of 'terrorists' have already been killed and arrested.
"But the prestige of the regime has been shattered," our correspondent said. "Losing control of Damascus [means] the regime is slowly losing its grip over the country ... There have been reports that troops have been moved from the Golan Heights to Damascus."
"The concern now is really how to manage a peaceful transition. The silent majority [of Syrian people] is worried the country is being destroyed. People are thinking about about the day after Bashar al-Assad leaves power, since there seems to be a consensus that it's only a matter of time before the regime falls.
She said many Syrians were worried about the "need to avoid a power vacuum".
"The Damascus fighting is now in its fifth day, getting close to the power base of the Syrian president. Many people say the conflict has reached a turning point."
