Babylon was the capitol city of an empire which had defeated Israel in the Old Testament. Although this could be predicting that there will be a new Babylon that rises in opposition to God, it is probably symbolic of the capitol of whatever empire will align with the Antichrist in opposition to God. It will enjoy wealth and power and try to defeat Jesus (the Lamb), but this success will be short-lived.
We often see people and groups opposed to God that seem to be succeeding. The opposition may be denying God’s existence, cursing him or openly behaving in ways God says are wrong. It may not appear that God is doing anything about it, but He will. We can rescue people from God’s judgment by leading them to Jesus so their names can be written in the book of life mentioned in verse 8.