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October 17, 2026

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

Analysis

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

The Israeli leader revealed that he spoke with the Syrian president last year, but stalled talks and Israel's fortification of a security zone on Syrian land underscore his mistrust of Sharaa.

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

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.

Latest News

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

Analysis

Why Syria and Iraq are taking different approaches to armed groups

Demonstrators ride through a street while waving Syrian flags

Shelly Kittleson

By Shelly Kittleson

In Baghdad, reporting on Iraqi politics

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

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 Turkish military convoy drives along the M4 highway, which links the northern Syrian provinces of Aleppo and Latakia, near the village of al-Nayrab, about 14 kilometres southeast of Idlib city and seven kilometres west of Saraqib in northwestern Syria on March 25, 2020. (Photo by OMAR HAJ KADOUR / AFP) (Photo by OMAR HAJ KADOUR/AFP via Getty Images)

Is Turkey ready to take on jihadis in Syria’s Idlib?

While Turkey and Russia seek to maintain a cease-fire in Idlib, the Syrian government and jihadi groups want to resume battles.

A security man checks the temperature of a customer, as he enters the supermarket before curfew , following the outbreak of coronavirus, in Baghdad, Iraq March 17, 2020. REUTERS/Khalid al-Mousily - RC2RLF917B9G

Intel: US touts nearly $40 million in coronavirus aid to Middle East

The United States today touted nearly $40 million in aid to the Middle East and North Africa as part of a $274 million emergency health and humanitarian assistance package to help afflicted countries deal with the coronavirus pandemic.

Turkish government divided over lockdown proposals

Turkish policymakers are split on whether a lockdown approach is the best way to protect Turkey from coronavirus, with some more fearful of the economic fallout than the potential deaths.

Pump jacks operate in an oil field in the countryside of al-Qahtaniyah town in Syria's northeastern Hasakeh province near the Turkish border, on March 11, 2020. (Photo by Delil SOULEIMAN / AFP) (Photo by DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey appears to want more than Syria’s oil

Like Moscow and Washington, Ankara seems to be coveting the oilfields of Deir ez-Zor in Syrian Kurdistan, which Kurds fear would give Turkey an opening to take over the entire Rojava area.

A street cleaner rests at empty Souk al-Hamidieh, as restrictions are imposed as measure to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Damascus, Syria March 24, 2020. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki - RC2HQF9TCDQH

Is Syria unable, or unwilling, to fend off Iran coronavirus contagion?

While close links between Damascus and Tehran put the former at great risk of an influx of COVID-19 cases, Syria's reliance on Iran for political and military support may make stemming the spread more difficult.

The Russian Navy cargo ship Dvinitsa-50 sails in the Bosphorus, on its way to the Mediterranean Sea, in Istanbul, Turkey, March 24, 2020. REUTERS/Yoruk Isik - RC2HQF9QB951

Intel: Why Moscow is dispatching its military to fight coronavirus in Syria, Italy

On March 25, the first Russian navy cargo ship transited Turkey’s Bosporus strait en route to Syria. The ship was reportedly carrying three ambulances and a shipping container on its deck — equipment to be used to help fight the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in Syria.

A boy stands holding a Kurdish flag near a bonfire marking the Kurdish holiday of Noruz in Qamishli in Syria's northeastern Hasakah province on March 20, 2020, after the local authorities cancelled holiday celebrations due to fears of the spread of COVID-19 coronavirus disease. - The Persian New Year is an ancient Zoroastrian tradition celebrated by Iranians and Kurds which coincides with the vernal (spring) equinox and is calculated by the solar calendar. (Photo by DELIL SOULEIMAN / AFP) (Photo by DELIL SO

Syrian Kurds still fight for rights on unrecognizable battlefield

Nine years into the Syrian war, much has changed for the Kurds, but conditions seem riper today than ever for them to obtain their rights.

A fighter of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) stands on the back of a pick-up truck, with a weapon installed on it, in Qamishli, Syria March 30, 2019. Picture taken March 30, 2019. REUTERS/Ali Hashisho - RC1961AA5550

SDF calls for humanitarian truce in Syria amid coronavirus crisis

Following the lead of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces call for a cease-fire in order for all warring parties to combat COVID-19 instead.

Does Turkey have the will to take on jihadis in Idlib?

Turkey and Russia will continue to be at odds in Syria's Idlib due to radical groups like Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.

$DAMASCUS, SYRIA - MARCH 23, 2020: Russia's Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Syria's President Bashar al-Assad (L-R front) shake hands during a meeting. Vadim Savitsky/Russian Defence Ministry Press Office/TASS (Photo by Vadim Savitsky\TASS via Getty Images)$

Intel: What was Russia’s defense minister doing in Syria?

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu just paid a visit to Damascus for talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

A member of the Asayish stands near a man in a wheelchair along an empty street, as restrictions are imposed as measure to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Qamishli, Syria March 23, 2020. REUTERS/Rodi Said - RC2VPF9ALD0J

Kurdish-led northeast under lockdown as Syria announces first coronavirus case

The Kurdish-led autonomous administration declares a two-week curfew in an effort to keep the coronavirus out of northeast Syria; Turkey cuts off water supply to Hasakah.

Impacts of US withdrawal from Qaim base in Iraqi border with Syria

US forces pulled out of the strategic Qaim area on the Iraqi-Syrian border in mid-March, citing success in preventing IS resurgence; locals agree that the Islamic State presence has been significantly weakened but warn the move may lead to nonstate actors gaining more power over official Iraqi security forces.