Syria Conflict

Demonstrators hold a banner reading "Free Gaza, free world"

Analysis

Gaza progress, Syria pullback: What Turkey wants from Israel’s next government

Ankara sees room for limited improvement in ties if Israel’s next government eases Gaza’s humanitarian crisis and reduces military pressure on Syria.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

A general view shows the Awad oil field in the eastern Qamishli countryside in northeastern Syria, on Feb. 15, 2026.

Interview

US oil firm HKN aims to double output in Syria's formerly Kurdish-run fields

HKN Vice President Matthew Zais tells Al-Monitor the company plans to double production at Syria’s northeastern oil fields while tackling pollution, as questions remain over the future of the Kurdish-run Jazira Oil Company.

Matthew Zais

Matthew Zais

HKN vice president for government affairs

Zaidi

Iraq's Zaidi meets Sharaa on first Syria visit: What to know

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has sought to assuage concerns about his past militant activity in Iraq, whose oil trade and security cooperation with his two country is rising.

Mourners attend the funeral of those who were killed in airstrikes carried out by Jordan the night before on the village of Al-Taf in the Al-Lajat region, located in the northeastern countryside of Daraa, on Oct. 27, 2026.

Syria slams Jordan over crossborder strikes, denies coordination: What to know

Jordan said its airstrikes targeted ISIS fighters, while Syria said civilians were killed, sparking outrage.

Latest News

Culture

Syrian women easy target in Sharaa’s drive to consolidate power

New female cadets from the new women's police academy attend the first cohort graduation ceremony after completing a six-month training program, in al-Tal on the northern outskirts of Damascus, on Sept. 22, 2026.

Analysis

What’s at stake for Turkey as Israel heads to the polls?

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan receives Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Turkish House in New York, on Sept. 19, 2023.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Analysis

How Israel’s elections could bring thaw with Syria

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa arrives for the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly gathering, UN Headquarters, New York, Sept. 22, 2026.

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Analysis

'The problem and the solution': Netanyahu-Sharaa call exposes Israel's Syria dilemma

Israeli troops stand guard on the dividing line between the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights and Syrian, near Majdal Shams, July 16, 2025.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Why is Turkish Cypriot leader declared ‘enemy’ in Turkey?

The leader of the Cypriot Turks angered Ankara in October for criticizing the Turkish incursion into Syria, but all hell has broken loose since he recently said that any move by Turkey to annex Northern Cyprus would be a “horrible” prospect.

TOPSHOT - Syrian army units advance in the town of al-Eis in south Aleppo province on February 9, 2020, following battles with rebels and jihadists. - Al-Eis, which overlooks the M5, was on a front that saw fierce fighting between the regime and its opponents in 2016. Syrian troops advancing north of Idlib linked up near Al-Eis with their comrades pushing south of Aleppo, state news agency SANA said. The two units had recently waged separate battles in rural Aleppo and southern Idlib, but are now conjoined

Syrian army makes gains in Idlib, opposition blames Turkey

Syrian opposition groups wonder what value the Turkish observation posts and the Turkish army have in Idlib, as the Syrian regime forces make great advances in the area.

Is Turkey planning to curb radicals in Idlib under strategy shift?

In a scenario that invokes its Afrin operation in 2018, Ankara speaks of reining in radical groups and asserting field control in Idlib, hoping that Moscow will give it a nod to avoid war.

A man rides on a motorbike past Turkish military vehicles in Hazano near Idlib, Syria, February 11, 2020. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi - RC2HYE9DX8HU

Turkey grows erratic as clashes in Idlib escalate

The Turkish government seems increasingly irrational as clashes intensify between Syrian government forces and Turkey-backed rebels in Idlib.

Displaced yet again, Syrians flee Idlib for Manbij

With intense shelling and catastrophic conditions in Idlib province, the Syrian Democratic Forces are welcoming refugees into areas they control to the east around Manbij.

Raqqa seeks to repair what IS ruined

The Religious Affairs Foundation in Raqqa held its first Islamic forum as part of efforts to correct the religious concepts that the Islamic State misinterpreted and practiced, in an attempt to bridge the gap that IS created among the Syrian communities.

How Idlib escalation could affect Syrian Kurds

Syrian Kurds are pondering how to take advantage of Turkish-Russian tensions over Idlib, focusing on Turkish-controlled Afrin and not ruling out the prospect of fighting along with government forces if the conflict escalates.

NUR SULTAN, KAZAKHSTAN - AUGUST 02: Turkish committee under the presidency of Deputy Turkish Foreign Minister Sedat Onal meet Russian committee within the 13th guarantors meeting on Syria in Nur Sultan, Kazakhstan on August 02, 2019. (Photo by Aliia Raimbekova/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Intel: Five Turkish soldiers killed in Idlib amid Russian-Turkish de-escalation talks

Five Turkish troops were killed and five wounded in shelling by the Russian-backed Syrian regime today as the Turkish and Russian delegations were in talks in Ankara to wind down the clashes in Idlib.

Following Russian expansion, roadblocks in northeast Syria delineate zones of US control

US forces have been preventing Russian patrols from advancing along the M4 highway and around al-Malikiyya in northeastern Syria near the Turkish and Iraqi borders.

A poster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is seen on the main road to the airport in Damascus, Syria April 14, 2018. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki - RC138B3674B0

Intel: What's behind Russian Defense Ministry anger at Israeli strikes in Syria?

The Russian Defense Ministry slammed Israel on Feb. 7 for what the ministry considered a provocation in the skies over Syria.

Waves of displacement continue amid Idlib escalation

Idlib residents continue to flee toward the border with Turkey as Syrian regime forces, backed by Russian airstrikes, advance on the country’s last opposition stronghold.

'There's no mercy': Kurdish Red Crescent perseveres in northern Syria

Heyva Sor a Kurdistane, the Kurdish Red Crescent, has been doggedly rescuing the wounded and attending to the sick in northeastern Syria since 2012.