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Syria

January 16, 2026

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Members of the Kurdish forces hold a portrait of Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler which reads "Shame on the killers of innocents in the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood" during a protest by Syrian Kurds against violence they say was committed by Syrian government forces during recent clashes in Aleppo's Kurdish neighbourhoods, in the Kurdish-controlled northeastern city of Qamishli on Jan. 13, 2026.

Syria declares 'closed military zone' east of Aleppo as Kurds protest

The Syrian government accused the Kurdish-led SDF of mobilizing in the area, reflecting ongoing turmoil following a ceasefire.

President of Syria Ahmed al-Shara arrives for the 80th session of the UN’s General Assembly (UNGA) at UN Headquarters on Sept. 23, 2025 in New York City. — Alexi J. Rosenfeld/Getty Images

Syria’s Sharaa heads to Davos, ending years of global isolation

The World Economic Forum begins on January 19 and ends on January 23, hosting a cohort of around 400 political leaders.

Sheikh Hikmat Salman al-Hijri is pictured at Qanawat, the headquarters of the Druze spiritual presidency, on Dec. 28, 2024, in Suwayda, Syria.

Syria Druze leader Hijri calls for independent entity, says country ‘heading toward partition’

Controversial Druze spiritual leader Hikmat al-Hijri, in Syria’s southern province of Suwayda, praised Israel as the only party he said intervened to stop the killing of Druze during a wave of unrest last summer.

Israel military vehicles drive along the border fence into Israel, near the town of Majdal Shams, in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, on July 17, 2025. Syrian government forces have withdrawn from the whole of Sweida province after days of sectarian bloodshed in the heartland of the Druze minority, a war monitor and witnesses said July 17, 2025. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP) (Photo by JALAA MAREY/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

What Syria and Israel’s new communications cell really signals

The deal reached in Paris under US mediation reflects a rare step toward managing tensions but stops short of halting Israeli military strikes or producing a broader security pact.

Rina Bassist

By Rosaleen Carroll , Rina Bassist

Latest News

Exclusive

Closed-door breakdown in Syria-Kurdish talks foreshadowed Aleppo clashes

Bakr ALKASEM / AFP via Getty Images

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Sharaa tells Iraq's Barzani Kurds integral to Syria amid fears of Aleppo spillover

Safin HAMID / AFP via Getty Images

Interview

Top Syrian Kurdish official Foza Yusuf says war with Damascus lose-lose for all

An undated image of Foza Yusif.

Foza Yusuf

Foza Yusuf

Top Syrian Kurdish official

Turkey's Fidan says Israel ties harden SDF stance as Syria clashes grow

ATTA KENARE / 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

TOPSHOT - This picture taken on November 23, 2019 shows the aftermath of a car bomb explosion at the industrial zone in the northern Syrian town of Tal Abyad, on the border with Turkey. - Several people were killed, including civilians, over a dozen injured by the blast in the Turkish-controlled northern Syrian town. Turkey and its Syrian proxies control several pockets of territory on the Syrian side of the border as a result of successive incursions in 2016-17, 2018 and 2019. (Photo by Zein Al RIFAI / AFP

Syrian opposition accuses Kurdish forces of booby-trapping fuel trucks

The Syrian armed opposition factions are accusing the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces of planting explosive devices in fuel-laden trucks along the border with the opposition areas to prevent smuggling of fuel.

Aid groups overwhelmed by needs and numbers of displaced Syrians

In an attempt to alleviate the suffering of the displaced and as part of the winter response plan for the camps, Syrian humanitarian organizations are implementing different projects. But they have still failed to reach radical solutions.

Syria reports new Israeli airstrikes following explosion on Israeli ship in the Gulf

Israel's public broadcaster Kan reported that the missile strikes near Damascus were in response to the explosion aboard an Israeli ship in the Gulf of Oman last week.

Syrian refugees are no longer guests in Sudan

Sudan is changing its rules for Syrians wishing to reside in the country after years of being able to travel to Sudan without a visa, and the right to work, education and medical care.

Civil society in northeast Syria promotes women’s role to fight extremism

A civil society organization in northern and eastern Syria has launched a project to eradicate violent extremism by promoting the role of women on the educational and economic levels.

Saudi-backed government troops repel a Huthi rebel offensive on oil-rich Marib, some 120 kilometres (75 miles) east of Yemen's rebel-held capital Sanaa, on February 14, 2021. - The UNs humanitarian chief said he was "very alarmed" by a Huthi rebel assault on the Yemeni governments last northern stronghold of Marib, saying it could endanger millions of civilians. (Photo by - / AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

Biden administration shouldn’t stop with Yemen

The United States can also play a key role in diplomacy to end wars in Syria and Libya.

Congress questions Biden's decision to bomb Syria

Some Democrats and Republicans on Capitol Hill are questioning the justification for the US airstrike against Iran-affiliated targets in eastern Syria.

Renu, eldest sister of Shamima Begum holds her sister's photo whilst being interviewed by the media at New Scotland Yard, Central London. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Sunday February 22, 2015. See PA story . Photo credit should read: Laura Lean/PA Wire

Islamic State recruit Shamima Begum can’t return to UK, court rules

Begum, whose British citizenship was revoked on national security grounds in 2019, is challenging the revocation from a displacement camp in Syria.

Is Russia extorting SDF in northeast Syria?

Russia is trying to extort the Syrian Democratic Forces in northeast Syria by threatening to retreat from its locations and leave the SDF at the mercy of the threats of the Turkish army and its allies, if the SDF does not respond to Russia’s demands and interests.

Syrian fighters attend a mock battle in anticipation of an attack by the regime on Idlib province and the surrounding countryside, during a graduation of new Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) members at a camp in the countryside of the northern Idlib province on August 14, 2018. (Photo by OMAR HAJ KADOUR / AFP) (Photo credit should read OMAR HAJ KADOUR/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army talks security with HTS in Idlib

Sources in the Syrian opposition have revealed contacts between Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and some of the Turkish-allied Free Syrian Army factions on security of the areas under the control of the FSA.

US President Joe Biden signs an executive order on securing critical supply chains, in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, DC, February 24, 2021. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

Biden approves airstrike on Iran-backed militias in Syria following Iraq attacks

Officials suggested the late-night precision bombing was designed to minimize casualties while avoiding backlash from the Iraqi government.

This picture taken from the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights on February 4, 2021, shows the border fence with the Syrian governorate of Quneitra. (Photo by JALAA MAREY / AFP) (Photo by JALAA MAREY/AFP via Getty Images)

The Israel-Russia-Syria deal: Cost, beneficiaries and future deals

As Israel and Syria conclude a deal on the return of an Israeli woman from Syria, questions arise regarding the cost and what the future of such transactions with Russian mediation should be.