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Syria

October 16, 2026

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An attendee walks past signage displayed inside the venue for the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG) at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center (QSNCC) in Bangkok on October 14, 2026. (Photo by ANTHONY WALLACE / AFP via Getty Images)

Syria to rejoin Arab group at IMF, leaving Russian-led constituency

Syria will rejoin the Arab constituency at the International Monetary Fund beginning Nov. 1 and has applied for membership in the EBRD.

Mihrac Ural, who was also known as Ali Kayali, was arrested

Explainer

Syria arrests Mihrac Ural, ex-Assad militia head also wanted by Turkey

The Turkey-born militia chief and a longtime ally of the Assad-regime, was sought by Ankara over the deadly Reyhanli bombings and by Damascus over his alleged role in massacres on the Mediterranean coast.

In first, Israel’s Netanyahu says he held call with Syria’s Ahmed al-Sharaa

It is the first publicly disclosed contact between the leaders of Israel and Syria, which lack formal relations and have fought several wars. Sharaa’s government began US-mediated talks with Israel in 2025.

Demonstrators ride through a street while waving Syrian flags

Analysis

Why Syria and Iraq are taking different approaches to armed groups

In a break from past policies, the new governments in Damascus and Baghdad are clamping down on militant groups with the capacity or desire to harm regional partners.

Shelly Kittleson

By Shelly Kittleson

In Baghdad, reporting on Iraqi politics

Latest News

Culture

Syria reopens Aleppo's 1,300-year-old Great Umayyad Mosque after 13 years

A view of the Great Umayyad Mosque during the reopening ceremony, Oct. 8, 2026.

Analysis

Why Syria sending troops to Yemen would be a risky bet for Sharaa

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman meets with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Riyadh, Oct. 6, 2026.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Culture

Syria's Kurds, Arabs find common cause in battle for language rights

Youths play the daf, an Iranian frame drum, during a protest demanding the right to education in the Kurdish language in Al-Qamishli, Syria, on September 22, 2026. The demonstrations follow a decision by the Syrian Interim Government to allocate only Kurdish language classes in schools. (Photo by Amjad Kurdo / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images)

Amberin Zaman

Chief Correspondent

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Jared Szuba

Defense and Security Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

Beatrice Farhat

Associate Editor (Lebanon)

In Beirut, reporting on regional news, culture, conflict

Danny Makki

In London, reporting on Syrian politics and culture

Ali Hashem

In Doha, reporting on Iran, regional politics, conflict

Cagatay Cebe

In Istanbul, reporting on security and counterterrorism

Residents gather at the site of bomb attacks in Baghdad May 27, 2013. More than 70 people were killed in a wave of bombings in markets in Shi'ite neighbourhoods across Baghdad on Monday in worsening sectarian violence in Iraq. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS) - RTX10368

Sectarian War a Two-Way Street For Iraq and Syria

What lessons do Syria’s Alawites learn from the experience of the Sunnis in Iraq?

The Syrian flag is seen as people watch Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah as he appears on a screen during a live broadcast to speak to his supporters at an event marking Resistance and Liberation Day, in Bekaa valley May 25, 2013. The event is to commemorate the 13th anniversary of Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS ANNIVERSARY) - RTX100E4

EU Puts Hezbollah on Notice

The European Union moves toward designating Hezbollah a terrorist organization as its arms embargo on Syria is allowed to lapse.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (R) meets with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Paris, May 27, 2013. REUTERS/Jim Young (FRANCE - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX103D0

The Missing Syrian Peace

US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov are still working on the invitation list for Geneva II.

Forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad carry their weapons as they move during what they said was an operation to push rebels from the road between Dahra Abd Rabbo village and Castello in Aleppo May 27, 2013. REUTERS/George Ourfalian (SYRIA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST MILITARY POLITICS CONFLICT) - RTX102VH

How We Lost The Syrian Revolution

A Syrian activist in Aleppo laments the lost revolution as he reveals the sense of betrayal felt after rebels looted and ravaged his city.

Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu wipes his eye as he addresses a news conference during an European Union-Turkey association council in Brussels May 27, 2013. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir (BELGIUM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX102QD

Revisiting Davutoglu on Syria

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu’s first-ever admission of mistakes in Syria policy offers clues to his mindset.

Supporters of Hezbollah and relatives of Hezbollah members throw rice on a coffin at the funeral of a Hezbollah fighter who died in the Syrian conflict in Ouzai in Beirut May 26, 2013. Hezbollah forces and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's troops launched a fierce assault last week aimed at driving Syrian rebels out of Qusair, a strategic town close to the Lebanese border that rebels have used as a crucial supply corridor for weapons coming into Syria. REUTERS/Issam Kobeisy (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CONFLI

Hezbollah Confesses To Hand in Qusair Battle

Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah has explicitly acknowledged his party’s role in Syria, and sources describe the battle for Qusair.

Turkey and Syria’s Kurds Edging Toward an Uneasy Peace?

Fresh fighting between Syrian Kurdish groups and Arab opposition fighters in Syria's Kurdish region is threatening to spread.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu speaks to the media after the Friends of Syria alliance meeting in Amman May 22, 2013. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed (JORDAN - Tags: POLITICS) - RTXZX4H

Davutoglu Cautiously 'Not Pessimistic' On Syria

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu says US-Turkish policies on Syria are now synchronized.

A boy wearing an army suit is held by people as they watch Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah as he appears on a screen during a live broadcast to speak to his supporters at an event marking Resistance and Liberation Day, in Bekaa valley May 25, 2013. The event is to commemorate the 13th anniversary of Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS) MEDIA ANNIVERSARY) - RTX100EC

Nasrallah on Syria: 'This Battle Is Ours'

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah declares war on Salafist groups and calls for "political dialogue" in Syria.

Syrian War Overtakes Lebanese Valley

Lebanon’s Wadi Khaled faces hardship and divisions as a result of the war in Syria.

A Lebanese army soldier is seen atop his tank as an ambulance travels past in Tripoli May 20, 2013. Three people have been killed and about 40 wounded in two days of fighting in Lebanon's northern city of Tripoli, security sources said on Monday, as sectarian violence spilled over from the civil war in Syria. REUTERS/Omar Ibrahim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST MILITARY) - RTXZTWK

Syria's Struggle Is Now Lebanon's Struggle

Lebanon's political stability and instability have always depended on external key powers; today, the effect of the Syrian crisis, is no different.

Lebanese Sunni gunmen ride on motorcycles during the funeral of one of their colleagues in Lebanon's northern city of Tripoli May 20, 2013. Three people have been killed and about 40 wounded in two days of fighting in Tripoli, security sources said on Monday, as sectarian violence spilled over from the civil war in Syria. REUTERS/Omar Ibrahim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTXZTWV

Tripoli a ReflectionOf Syria’s Sectarian War

The fighting in Tripoli complicates Lebanon’s politics.