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

BEIRUT, LEBANON - JUNE 19 : (----EDITORIAL USE ONLY MANDATORY CREDIT - "LEBANESE PRIME MINISTRY OFFICE / HANDOUT" - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS----) Russian Presidential Envoy for Syria Alexander Lavrentyev (L) meets Lebanese President Michel Aoun (R) in Beirut, Lebanon on June 19, 2019. (Photo by LEBANESE PRIME MINISTRY OFFICE / HANDOUT/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

Russian diplomats sweep through Lebanon, Iraq, Syria

Russia's Syria envoy Alexander Lavrentiev and others recently paid important visits to the Middle East to present Russia’s refugee plan and discuss the latest regional developments.

As Idlib fighting intensifies, Syrians abroad suffer mentally

As the Russian-backed Syrian regime steps up the offensive against the country’s last rebel stronghold, displaced Syrians with relatives in Idlib are suffering mentally — not to mention the monumental health issues faced by the Idlib residents themselves.

A Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighter stands near who he said were Islamic State fighters held prisoners, north of Raqqa city, Syria March 8, 2017. REUTERS/Rodi Said TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC15149E3320

Congress expands Pentagon aid in Syria to cover Islamic State prisoners

The Senate’s new defense authorization bill gives the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces greater leeway to build prisons for Islamic State detainees.

Turkish soldiers walk at the Atmeh crossing on the Syrian-Turkish border, as seen from the Syrian side, in Idlib governorate, Syria May 31, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi - RC17B93A8C20

Intel: How Russia is trying to calm Turkey-Syria tensions

Russia announced today that it had helped negotiate a cease-fire in rebel-controlled Idlib province this week as rising tensions between Turkey and Syria threaten to escalate into open conflict.

A man walks past damaged buildings in the city of Idlib, Syria May 24, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi - RC1D4BDCBD50

Russia, Turkey broker shaky cease-fire in Syria’s Idlib

Within hours of the announcement of a truce, Syrian forces are accused of firing on both rebel targets and a Turkish army outpost, but even a tentative respite is welcome as renewed clashes have displaced hundreds of thousands of people since April.

People gather during the funeral of Abdelbasset al-Sarout, 27, who died from wounds he sustained battling in northwest Syria, in the border town of al-Dana, Idlib, Syria June 9, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashaw - RC16B44F3FF0

The Syrian funeral that divided Turkey

A funeral ceremony for a controversial Syrian militant, known as “the singer of the revolution,” has sparked indignation in Turkey.

A Syrian government soldier walks past strewn mortar shells in the village of Qalaat al-Madiq, some 45 kilometres northwest of the central city of Hama, on May 17, 2019. - Syrian government forces a week prior had recaptured the northwestern town on the southwestern edge of the jihadist-controlled Idlib region, from around which jihadists and allied rebels were launching rockets on their Russian ally's key airbase. The capture of the town of Qalaat al-Madiq comes after weeks of intensified air strikes and s

Ex-FSA fighters recruited by Damascus to fight opposition in northern Syria

Syrian government forces are resorting to former Free Syrian Army fighters who reached reconciliation agreements with the regime, in its offensive in northern Syria.

A general view of Hassan Ahmed al-Aoul's house between rubble and damaged buildings in Aleppo's Salaheddine district, Syria April 13, 2019. Picture taken April 13, 2019. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki - RC19CA5CE4B0

Can Russia plug through US sanctions to reconstruct Syria?

Russia seeks to work around US sanctions to help reconstruct Syria, but some of Damascus' own policies may be unhelpful in this endeavor.

Iranian Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri meets with Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus, Syria in this handout released by SANA on January 29, 2019. SANA/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. REUTERS IS UNABLE TO INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY THIS IMAGE - RC1FA4E62B00

Iran focuses on political solution while keeping military option open in Syria

While Iran’s plan to overcome the current challenges in Syria focuses on diplomatic and political measures, Tehran is preparing for all scenarios, including military escalation.

A column of armoured Turkish military vehicles drives on a patrol along a road in the de-militarised zone in Syria's northern Idlib province near the town Saraqib on March 8, 2019. - In September 2018, Syrian rebel backer Turkey and regime ally Russia inked a deal to set up a buffer zone in northern Syria. Russia halted an imminent regime offensive many feared could lead to the Syrian conflict's worst bloodbath yet, in exchange for which Turkey was to remove jihadists from the edges of the region. (Photo by

Turkey’s risky route in Idlib

Turkey is struggling to maintain a balance with Russia as it takes action to block the Syrian army at Idlib.

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during his meeting with heads of foreign companies on the sidelines of the Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF-2019) in St. Petersburg, Russia, June 7, 2019. Yuri Kochetkov/Pool via REUTERS - RC1E84F20B40

Beneath tough exterior, Putin may be ready to deal on Iran

Russian President Vladimir Putin seems to hold all the cards in the region, but is Moscow ready to show its hand?

Syrian Army soldiers loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad forces are seen in Idlib, Syria January 21, 2018. Picture taken January 21, 2018. SANA/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. REUTERS IS UNABLE TO INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY THE AUTHENTICITY, CONTENT, LOCATION OR DATE OF THIS IMAGE. - RC1DEF904AD0

Russia, Iran in tug of war over Syria military reform

Moscow and Tehran have disparate views on how the Syrian military should be reformed.