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Syria

October 30, 2026

Damascus 10:46 am

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A general view shows the Awad oil field in the eastern Qamishli countryside in northeastern Syria, on Feb. 15, 2026.

Interview

US oil firm HKN aims to double Syria's output as it takes over Kurdish-run fields

HKN Vice President Matthew Zais tells Al-Monitor the company plans to double production at Syria’s northeastern oil fields while tackling pollution, as questions remain over the future of the Kurdish-run Jazira Oil Company.

Matthew Zais

Matthew Zais

HKN vice president for government affairs

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.

Latest News

Culture

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

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.

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

A couple are seen walking at Zaytouna Bay in Beirut October 25, 2012. The party capital of the Arab world, Beirut is a freewheeling city where Gulf Arabs, expatriates and Lebanese emigres fly in to enjoy its luxury hotels. But under the veneer of modernity lie sectarian demons coiled to strike. The car-bomb assassination last Friday of intelligence chief Wissam al-Hassan - an attack almost universally blamed on Syria and its local allies - brought the merry-go-round to a juddering halt. Gunmen and protester

Syria's Wealthy Refugees Wait Out War in Beirut

Many affluent Syrians who have escaped the violence sweeping their country have temporarily settled in Beirut, given its proximity to Syria and opulent lifestyle, writes Elie Hajj.

An Israeli soldier looks on as a United Nations jeep drives past the Quneitra border crossing between Israel and Syria, in the Golan Heights, on the Israeli side of the 1973 ceasefire line with Syria January 31, 2013. Israeli forces attacked a convoy on the Syrian-Lebanese border overnight, a Western diplomat and regional security sources said on Wednesday, as concern has grown in the Jewish state over the fate of Syrian chemical and advanced conventional weapons. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (POLITICS CIVIL UNREST)

The Strategic Bargain Of Israel-Hezbollah Deterrence

Israel’s strike against the Syrian convoy on Jan. 30 was not to escalate the conflict with Damascus, but to contain it, while maintaining deterrence between Israeli forces and Hezbollah, writes Jean-Loup Samaan.

Men drink tea and smoke water pipe at a cafe in the old city of Damascus November 8, 2012. REUTERS/Muzaffar Salman (SYRIA - Tags: SOCIETY) - RTR3A600

Life Continues in Damascus Despite Surrounding Conflict

As the Syrian conflict nears its third year, Damascus remains largely detached from its rural surroundings, writes Nasser Chararah.

Damaged cars are seen after an explosion at Cilvegozu border gate near the town of Reyhanli on the Turkish-Syrian border in Hatay province February 11, 2013, in this picture taken by Ihlas News Agency. A car exploded at a crossing on Turkey's border with Syria near the Turkish town of Reyhanli on Monday, killing at least nine people including Turkish citizens and wounding dozens more, officials said. REUTERS/Ihlas News Agency (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED

Car Bomb at Syrian Border Kills 13

Tulin Daloglu reports on the latest car bombing on the Syria-Turkey border, which killed 13 people, just 10 days after the US Embassy in Ankara was attacked by a suicide bomber.

The Campaign to Save New York's 'Little Syria'

Todd Fine outlines the campaign to save what's left of the historic "Little Syria" neighborhood on Washington Street in New York City.

U.S. President Barack Obama (L) and Senator John Kerry (D-MA) shake hands after the president announced Kerry's nomination as Secretary of State to succeed Hillary Clinton, at the White House in Washington December 21, 2012. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR3BTVQ

Week in Review: US Resets Diplomacy in Middle East

Al-Monitor’s coverage and analysis of a newly assertive US diplomacy toward the peace process, Iran and Syria.

Major-General Amos Yadlin, Israel's chief of military intelligence, speaks at the annual Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) conference in Tel Aviv December 15, 2009. Israel is parlaying civilian technological advances into a cyberwarfare capability against its enemies, Yadlin, a senior Israeli general, said on Tuesday in a rare public disclosure about the secret programme. REUTERS/Gil Cohen Magen (ISRAEL - Tags: MILITARY POLITICS SCI TECH) - RTXRVGO

Former Aman Chief Offers Realism on Threats to Israel

Former IDF intelligence chief Amos Yadlin has discounted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s scare tactics and argues that in terms of conventional threats, Israel’s situation has never been better, reports Ben Caspit.

U.S. President Barack Obama calls on Congress to pass a small package of spending cuts and tax reforms that would delay the larger, automatic "sequester" cuts from going into effect during an announcement in the White House briefing room in Washington February 5, 2013. Huge cuts to defense and domestic programs are slated to go into effect in roughly three weeks, a threat that has caused uncertainty and negatively affected economic growth, a White House official said. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts (UNITED STATE

Obama's Post-Election Pivot on Syria

Geoffrey Aronson describes the implications of President Barack Obama applying the "Congo Standard" for intervention in Syria.

Lebanese soldiers man a checkpoint after their deployment in Aarsal town in Lebanon's eastern Bekaa February 5, 2013. Four Lebanese soldiers and two gunmen were killed in clashes in the country's Bekaa Valley on Friday after militants attacked a Lebanese army unit, security sources said. REUTERS/ Ahmad Shalha (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3DDSC

Hezbollah: Israeli Strike On Syria Was Also a Strike at Iran

Tensions in Lebanon and the region are high amid fears that the Syrian crisis will spread, writes Nasser Chararah.

An Israeli air force F15-E fighter jet takes off for a mission over the Gaza Strip, from the Tel Nof air base in central Israel November 19, 2012. Israel bombed dozens of targets in Gaza on Monday and said that while it was prepared to step up its offensive by sending in troops, it preferred a diplomatic solution that would end Palestinian rocket fire from the enclave. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (ISRAEL - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR3AMGC

Each Side of Syrian Conflict Claims Israeli Strike in Its Favor

Following the Israeli aerial attacks on Syria, each side of the Syrian crisis questions the intentions behind the seemingly spontaneous offensive by their southern neighbor, writes Jean Aziz.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu attends a foreign ministers meeting ahead of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit in Cairo February 4, 2013. The OIC summit will be held from February 6-7. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3DCET

Dear Minister Davutoglu, Please Don't Stir Up War

Shlomi Eldar writes a personal letter to Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, who recently wondered publicly why Assad didn’t respond to the attack on Syria attributed to Israel.

Yair Lapid, leader of the Yesh Atid (There's a Future) party, leaves the podium after delivering a statement to the media, following his meeting with Israel's President Shimon Peres (unseen) in Jerusalem January 30, 2013. Peres on Wednesday began consultations with political parties over the formation of a new coalition and appears certain to pick incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to assemble it. Lapid's new centrist party stormed to second place in last week's election by winning 19 seats. REUTER

Netanyahu, Lapid and Syria

The reported Israeli attack on an arms convoy in Syria plays into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s hands to form a government with Yesh Atid Chairman Yair Lapid and the ultra-Orthodox parties, writes Mazal Mualem.