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June 15, 2026

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

Analysis

Erdogan-Netanyahu war of words signals deeper rivalry for regional influence

The latest Erdogan-Netanyahu clash underscored how Turkey-Israel tensions have grown beyond the Palestinian issue and into a wider regional rivalry spanning Syria, Lebanon, Iran and the eastern Mediterranean.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

AAREF WATAD/AFP via Getty Images

Russia in talks on 'reformatting' its military sites in Syria: What to know

Moscow signals it wants to maintain its presence in Syria, where President Ahmed al-Sharaa recently said that Russian bases will be converted into training centers.

Latest News

Syria says Iraqi oil shipments surge as Damascus courts foreign energy investment

A long convoys of Iraqi diesel-laden tanker trucks line up along the highway Tartus-Baniyas highway as they wait to unload their cargo at the Baniyas port refinery on the Mediterranean Sea, on April 15, 2026.

Explainer

Saudi Arabia, Turkey advance plans to revive historic Hejaz Railway

An old locomotive sits outside the Hejaz rail station in old Damascus on February 23, 2010. The Hejaz railway ran from Damascucs to Medina in Saudi Arabia and was part of the Ottoman railway network. AFP PHOTO/LOUAI BESHARA (Photo credit should read LOUAI BESHARA/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel-Iran escalation grounds flights across parts of Middle East

An Airbus A321 airliner arrives at the Mehrabad international airport during the delivery of the first batch of planes to the Iranian state airline Iran Air in the capital Tehran on Jaunary 12, 2017. - The aircraft arrived as part of an order for 100 other Airbus planes with a list price of around $20 billion (19 billion euros) on December 22, placed after the lifting of international sanctions on the Islamic republic. It will be used for internal flights landed at Tehran's Mehrabad airport. (Photo by ATTA

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

A general view shows a shipping container area at the port of Beirut November 20, 2012. Civil war in Syria is taking its toll on several sectors of the economy of neighbouring Lebanon, where exports have tumbled 12 percent, Lebanon's economy minister said on Monday. The IMF said in September that the main risk to the economy was poor policymaking, not Syria. To match Reuters Summit MIDEAST-SUMMIT/LEBANON-SYRIA REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir (LEBANON- Tags: BUSINESS) - RTR3ANO6

Lebanon Pays a Price For Syrian Economic Collapse

The worrying economic situation in conflict-ridden Syria has sent tremors through Lebanon, a country that maintains strong economic ties with its eastern neighbor, writes Elie Hajj.

Syria's President Bashar al-Assad (L) meets Senator John Kerry, chairman of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, in Damascus February 21, 2009. REUTERS/Sana (SYRIA) - RTXBW2Q

Kerry to Assad, Opposition: 'Come to the Table'

US Secretary of State John Kerry calls on Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad to “come to the table” to begin negotiations; the bitter springs of Tunisia and Egypt; and Gaza Salafists fight in Syria.

Demonstrators dance during a protest marking two years since the start of the uprising , in the Bustan al-Qasr district in Aleppo March 17, 2013. REUTERS/Giath Taha (SYRIA - Tags: ANNIVERSARY POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3F4RR

Syria, Two Years and Counting

Nassif Hitti writes that time is working against Syria as the situation worsens by the day.

Israelis use binoculars to see the fighting in the Syrian village of al-Jamlah, from the Israeli occupied Golan Heights, close to the ceasefire line between Israel and Syria March 7, 2013. Israel voiced confidence on Thursday that the United Nations could secure the release of U.N. peacekeepers seized by Syrian rebels near the Golan Heights, signalling it would not intervene in the crisis. Israel captured the Golan Heights in the 1967 Middle East war and annexed it in 1981 in a move not recognized internati

Syrian Conflict Extends To Border With Israel

Syrian opposition forces are battling for control of regions near the Israeli border, threatening a conflict with that country, reports Nasser Chararah.

Syria's President Bashar al-Assad (3rd L) meets a Turkish parliamentary delegation headed by Hasan Akgol (4th R) in Damascus in this March 7, 2013 handout photo released by Syria's national news agency SANA. REUTERS/SANA (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT)

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. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS

Why the Turkish Opposition Likes Assad

Mustafa Akyol explains why the People’s Republican Party (CHP) is at ease with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and is unlikely to become a "social democratic party" in the European tradition.

United Nations peacekeepers put on protective gear before driving through the Kuneitra border crossing between Israel and Syria, in the Israeli occupied Golan Heights March 8, 2013. Israel voiced confidence on Thursday that the United Nations could secure the release of U.N. peacekeepers seized by Syrian rebels near the Golan Heights on Wednesday, signalling it would not intervene in the crisis. Israel captured the Golan Heights in the 1967 Middle East war and annexed it in 1981 in a move not recognized int

Israel-Syria Border Becomes Flashpoint

Syria's inability to control its border with Israel has introduced uncertainty and increased chances for the regionalization of Syria's civil war, writes Geoffrey Aronson.

Turkish soldiers block a road to Cilvegozu border gate near the town of Reyhanli on the Turkish-Syrian border in Hatay province February 11, 2013. A Syrian minibus exploded at Cilvegozu border post on Turkey's border with Syria near the Turkish town of Reyhanli on Monday, killing at least 13 people including Turkish citizens and wounding dozens more, Turkish officials said. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST DISASTER) - RTR3DNGS

Turkey's Syria Morass

Turkey needs an exit strategy from Syria, writes Pinar Tremblay.

A Palestinian man walks near placards designed by an activist depicting U.S. President Barack Obama, ahead of his visit to the region, in the West Bank city of Ramallah March 12, 2013. The White House has yet to officially announce the dates for the trip, but Israeli news media have reported that Obama will arrive in the region on March 20. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3EVUU

US Locked Into the Middle East

While events will not allow the United States to pivot from the Middle East to Asia, the US still needs a coherent strategy for the region, writes Jean-Loup Samaan.

EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on leaving the office to report, film or take pictures in Tehran.

Members of the revolutionary guard attend the anniversary ceremony of Iran's Islamic Revolution at the Khomeini shrine in the Behesht Zahra cemetery, south of Tehran, February 1, 2012. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi (IRAN - Tags: POLITICS ANNIVERSARY MILITARY) - RTR2X5DT

Iran's Man in Iraq and Syria

Iranian Quds Forces leader Qasem Soleimani, who played a central role in post-2003 Iraq, has taken a different slant in his approach to the Syrian conflict, writes Mushreq Abbas.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu pauses during the 49th Conference on Security Policy in Munich February 3, 2013. Senior politicians along with the leader of the Syrian opposition are in Munich providing a rare opportunity for talks to revive efforts to end the civil war in Syria. REUTERS/Michael Dalder (GERMANY - Tags: MILITARY POLITICS) - RTR3DALG

Davutoglu Should Give Up 'Military Solution' in Syria

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu is getting nowhere in his bid to have the European Union lift the arms embargo on Syria, and he should realize his pursuit of a military solution there is only prolonging the conflict, writes Semih Idiz.

Lebanon's Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour attends an Arab League meeting in Cairo March 6, 2013. Mansour called on Wednesday for Syria's suspension from the Arab League to be lifted in order to help find a political solution to the conflict in the country. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT) - RTR3EN63

Lebanon Foreign Minister Creates Stir Over Syria

Lebanon’s foreign minister, Adnan Mansour, draws criticism from both his own government and the Gulf states by calling for the reinstatement of Assad’s Syria in the Arab League, writes Elie Hajj.

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'Irish Sam' Joins Fight in Syria

Housam Najjair, also known as "Irish Sam," discusses his forthcoming book and his experiences waging war against former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, writes Ali Hashem.