Trump’s pick for top general could expand Mideast advising role

The Pentagon’s incoming Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman has a long track record of training foreign military forces.

Syria

Erdogan says Trump responded 'positively' to Turkey’s threats on Syria

According to Ankara, the US president expressed support both for its stance against US-allied Kurdish militants in Syria and its efforts to extradite Fethullah Gulen as its chief suspect in the 2016 Turkish coup attempt.

Syria

Iran media on Bashir trip to Syria: Arab states have accepted reality of Assad

Iranian media believe that the Sudanese president's meeting with Bashar al-Assad is a sign that Arab countries are beginning to accept the reality on the ground in Syria.

Saudi Arabia

Opposition group in Idlib orders extreme punishments

One of two opposition governments in rebel-controlled Idlib, Syria, has implemented a form of Islamic Sharia punishment that calls for criminals to be executed, exiled or have their hands cut off.

Syria

Turkey's 'Olive Branch' takes root in Syrian olive business

Kurdish olive growers in Afrin, Syria, complain bitterly that Turkish authorities who control the area aren't doing anything to stop massive exploitation and armed extortion that is costing the local oil economy $100 million.

Syria

Pentagon warns Turkey against operation targeting Syrian Kurds

Despite Turkey's threats to attack the US-allied Kurdish militia in Syria, there is little evidence that Washington would let Ankara move into the Syrian Kurdish area under its protection.

Syria

Trust needed between Arabs and Kurds to stabilize Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor

A series of attacks and assassinations in Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor have heightened tensions between the Arab population and Kurds.

Syria

Erdogan says Turkish troops to march into northeast Syria

Some experts think Erdogan's threat to send troops into northeast Syria is a trial balloon that has more to do with Turkey's March 31 local elections than anything else, but others take his statements more seriously.

Syria

Can Russia, China cooperate on the Middle East?

Russia and China seek to reinforce cooperation over the Middle East, but each approaches the region with its own rationale.

Syria

US erects observation posts to avert war between Turks, Syrian Kurds

The move highlights the complexity Washington faces in its efforts to maintain a military presence in Syria while appeasing fellow NATO ally Turkey.

Syria

The unlikely war between Iran, Hezbollah and Israel

Despite increasingly tough rhetoric and the launch of an operation along the border with Lebanon, Israel is unlikely to enter all-out war against Iran and its regional allies.

Israel

Does the US want a war with Iran over Syria?

Despite Trump’s initial caution about an indefinite military commitment, the risks of the United States getting drawn into the Syria conflict are growing.

Saudi Arabia