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Syria

October 29, 2026

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Zaidi

Iraq's Zaidi meets Sharaa on first Syria visit: What to know

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has sought to assuage concerns about his past militant activity in Iraq, whose oil trade and security cooperation with his two country is rising.

Mourners attend the funeral of those who were killed in airstrikes carried out by Jordan the night before on the village of Al-Taf in the Al-Lajat region, located in the northeastern countryside of Daraa, on Oct. 27, 2026.

Syria slams Jordan over crossborder strikes, denies coordination: What to know

Jordan said its airstrikes targeted ISIS fighters, while Syria said civilians were killed, sparking outrage.

New female cadets from the new women's police academy attend the first cohort graduation ceremony after completing a six-month training program, in al-Tal on the northern outskirts of Damascus, on Sept. 22, 2026.

Culture

Syrian women easy target in Sharaa’s drive to consolidate power

Syria’s interim president is balancing Western demands for inclusion with pressure from Islamist hard-liners as he seeks to consolidate power and shed his jihadi past.

Latest News

Analysis

How Israel’s elections could bring thaw with Syria

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa arrives for the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly gathering, UN Headquarters, New York, Sept. 22, 2026.

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Analysis

How Hormuz crisis is reshaping economic ties between Iraq and Syria

Trucks loaded with goods wait to cross over to Syria

Shelly Kittleson

By Shelly Kittleson

In Baghdad, reporting on Iraqi politics

Analysis

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

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

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

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

Members of the Muslim Brotherhood and supporters of deposed Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi shout slogans in front of army soldiers at Republican Guard headquarters in Nasr City, a suburb of Cairo July 8, 2013. At least 51 people were killed on Monday when demonstrators enraged by the military overthrow of Egypt's elected Islamist president said the army opened fire during morning prayers outside the Cairo barracks where Mursi is believed to be held. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS CIVI

Four Reasons Why Iran Wins From Morsi’s Fall

Iran stands to gain regionally from the coup in Egypt.

A newly arrived Syrian refugee receives aid and rations, at Al-Zaatri refugee camp in the Jordanian city of Mafraq, near the border with Syria, on World Refugee Day, June 20, 2013. U.N. refugee chief Antonio Guterres, and the Norwegian foreign Minister, Espen Barth Eide, along with United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) special envoy, actress Angelina Jolie, held a news conference at the camp to commemorate the World Refugee Day, and to urge the world to support refugees in Syria and around t

UN Role in Post-Conflict Syria Depends on Geneva

With no date set for the Geneva Conference, the UN has so far been unable to come up with a peacekeeping plan for Syria.

Jordanian Salafi jihadi leader Abu Sayyaf (R) speaks to his supporters and the media during a demonstration against prolonged detention of the group's leaders near the prime minister's office in Amman, April 9, 2013. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed (JORDAN - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST RELIGION) - RTXYES1

Rise of Local Salafist Jihadists Worries Jordan's Government

For decades, the Muslim Brotherhood has been the Jordanian government's main political rival. But a new player has emerged to fret the Hashemite regime: homegrown Salafist jihadists.

A Lebanese Sunni Muslim woman and supporter of Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri kisses a poster of him (L) and his father, assassinated former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri, during a protest in Tripoli, northern Lebanon, calling for Hariri to remain as prime minister and form the new government, January 24, 2011. Lebanese telecoms tycoon Najib Mikati, who is backed by Hezbollah and its allies, was set to lead a new government on Monday after winning support from Druze leader Walid Jumblatt

Lebanon's Sectarian Fall

As the Syrian conflict continues to rage, tensions are on the rise between Lebanese Sunnis and Shiites as a result of their affiliations with divergent Syrian groups.

Adnan Bader of the Al-Asala Society, a Sunni pro-government group, waves as he arrives at the National Dialogue session in Manama June 12, 2013. The talks, aimed at ending more than two years of unrest in Bahrain, resumed after a two-week boycott by opposition societies in retaliation against a raid on the home of Ayatollah Sheikh Isa Qassim by security forces. REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed (BAHRAIN - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX10LAB

Bahrain Salafists Increase Involvement in Syria War

Bahraini Salafists are playing a role in the fight against the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Demonstrators display a model of a MiG-21 fighter plane during a demonstration against Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Amuda June 22, 2012. Syrian air force pilot Colonel Hassan Hamada flew his MiG-21 fighter plane over the border to Jordan and was granted political asylum on Thursday, the first defection with a military aircraft since the start of the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad. REUTERS/Shaam News Network/Handout (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST TRANSPORT) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY.

Syrian Kurdish Group Linked to PKK Kills Protesters

A first-hand report from Amuda, Syria.

Syrian students sits in a UNICEF school during a visit by European Union Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response Kristalina Georgieva and Italy's Foreign Minister Emma Bonino at the Al Zaatri refugee camp in the Jordanian city of Mafraq, near the border with Syria June 25, 2013. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed (JORDAN - Tags: EDUCATION CONFLICT SOCIETY) - RTX1106A

New Syrian Institution Helps US Deliver Humanitarian Aid

A senior US aid official tasked with coordinating humanitarian assistance to Syria says he is “all for” prolonging the Syria war if it leads to a “democratic Syria.”

Lebanese Shi'ite politician Ahmad al-Assaad, head of the Lebanese Option group, speaks during an interview with Reuters at his office in Hazmiyeh, near Beirut, May 5, 2009. Picture taken May 5, 2009. REUTERS/Cynthia Karam (LEBANON POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTXES0U

Lebanese Shiites' Divisions Intensify Over Syria

The murder of a student leader of an anti-Hezbollah Shiite group has served as a reminder of historical and shifting divisions within Lebanon’s Shiite community.

A general view shows damaged buildings at Karm al-Jabal neighborhood of Aleppo, an area controlled by the Free Syrian Army fighters, June 20, 2013. REUTERS/George Ourfalian (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX10V7U

Syria's rebels in rift with Aleppo's civil opposition

Aleppo's civil opposition has been swept aside as hard-line armed groups assert their power in the city.

Yemen's President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi smiles during the opening of the second plenary session of the dialogue conference in Sanaa June 8, 2013. REUTERS/Mohamed al-Sayaghi (YEMEN - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX10G6Q

Syrians Add to Yemen Refugee Crisis

As with a previous wave of refugees that fled from Syria to Yemen during former Syrian President Hafez al-Assad's reign in the 1980s, Syrian refugees arriving there today find political, economic and security instability.

An employee seals bags of Syrian pound notes at the Syrian central bank in Damascus April 23, 2013. Picture taken April 23, 2013. To match SYRIA-CURRENCY/ REUTERS/Khaled al-Hariri (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT BUSINESS) - RTXYYBZ

Syrian Government Deals With Currency Collapse

The Syrian government has increased public sector employees' salaries and has kept its monthly ration coupons to counter the effects of war and sanctions on the economy.

Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani (C) speaks during the London 11 countries "Friends of Syria" meeting in Doha June 22, 2013. Western and Arab opponents of Bashar al-Assad met in Qatar on Saturday to tighten coordination of their stepped up support for rebels battling to overthrow the Syrian president. REUTERS/Mohammed Dabbous (QATAR - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT) - RTX10WYN

Syria in 'Free Fall'

Edward Dark describes the despair in both Aleppo and a Syrian prison; Syria is in “free fall,” according to the chairman of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria.