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Palmyra

Syria

July 9, 2026

Damascus 10:28 pm

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US President Donald Trump meets Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa (L) on the sidelines of the NATO Summit at Bestepe Presidential Compound in Ankara, on July 8, 2026.

US to drop Syria from terror blacklist

The terrorism label remained a key obstacle to Syria's postwar reconstruction.

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa (R) shakes hands with France's President Emmanuel Macron following a joint press conference in Damascus on July 7, 2026.

Explainer

French energy, shipping giants explore Syria deals during Macron visit

The two countries signed preliminary pacts spanning transport, healthcare, banking, infrastructure and development on Tuesday, even as twin explosions in the capital underscored the fragile investment environment.

Ludovic MARIN / AFP via Getty Images

Macron's Syria visit eyes to boost France's economic role: What to know

The two leaders discussed ways to strengthen cooperation and various regional developments during the first visit by a Western head of state to Syria since the civil war ended.

Latest News

Two explosions hit Damascus as Macron visits Syria

Security personnel and first responders prepare to cordon off an area near the Four Seasons Hotel following two blasts nearby in Damascus on July 7, 2026. Syrian authorities said 18 people were wounded by two blasts in central Damascus on July 7 near the hotel where France's president spent the night, with the Elysee Palace saying his visit is ongoing. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

How Syria’s wheat fields turned into first battleground over reconstruction

Farmers roast harvested wheat using fire in a field on the outskirts of Aleppo, Syria, on May 18, 2026.

Haddon Barth

By Haddon Barth

Analysis

Can a UAE-backed Syria-Iraq corridor become Gulf's next trade route?

An aerial view shows port of the western Syrian port city of Latakia, on Dec. 18, 2024.

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

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

Children on Nov. 20, 2021, carry a bucket of water, in the Bardaqli camp for displaced people in the town of Dana in Syria's northwestern Idlib province, as winter approaches.

Deteriorating Turkish lira hurts residents in Syria's Idlib

The depreciation of the Turkish lira against the US dollar has resulted in worsening living conditions in Idlib and increased the people’s resentment against Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and the Salvation Government, which they hold primarily responsible for the economic crisis.

A memorial to victims of the 1960 fire in Amude, Syria. Image taken Nov. 5, 2021

Syrian-Kurdish couple sets Amude's cinema ghosts to rest

Since a deadly fire in 1960, going to the cinema has been taboo in the Kurdish town of Amude in northeastern Syria, and a couple who recently emigrated from Europe hopes to change things.

ABDULAZIZ KETAZ/AFP via Getty Images

Drought parches Idlib governorate

Drought has dried up the Duwaisat Dam reservoir, west of Idlib, hitting farmers hard.

This picture shows a view of nightlife ahead of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha at the Clock Square, Idlib, Syria, July 18, 2021.

Jihadi group seeks command of media, advertising in northwest Syria

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham is seeking to organize media and advertising fields to serve its interests and the inclinations of its affiliated Salvation Government in Idlib in northwestern Syria.

The minarets of mosques and the steeples of churches are seen towering above rooftops in the Syrian capital Damascus, on June 26, 2013.

Jews of Syrian origin return to visit Damascus

The Syrian government has allowed some Jews of Syrian origin, residing in New York, to visit Damascus.

DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP via Getty Images

Turkey's war of attrition against Syria's Kurds

Alongside shelling and drones, Turkey is weaponizing water supplies in northeast Syria, turning an already horrible situation into a nightmare

Smoke and fire billow after shelling on the Islamic State group's last holdout of Baghuz, in the eastern Syrian Deir ez-Zor province on March 3, 2019.

Intel: Pentagon chief briefed on 2019 Syria airstrike

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the briefing after reading an investigation into the strike by The New York Times.

A member of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), made up of an alliance of Arab and Kurdish fighters, removes an Islamic State group flag in the town of Tabqa, about 55 kilometres (35 miles) west of Raqa city, on April 30, 2017, as they advance in their battle for the group's de facto capital.

Attack on Syrian prison holding Iraqi Islamic State captives raises concerns

Local forces backed by coalition air support reportedly prevented an attack on a prison housing thousands of Islamic State operatives in northeastern Syria under Kurdish-led administration.

Members of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps march during the annual military parade marking the anniversary of the outbreak of the Iraq-Iran War, Tehran, Iran, Sept. 22, 2018.

IRGC Syria commander removed 'upon request from Assad'

The future of Iran’s presence in Syria seems to be dividing the Syrian leadership.

BAKR ALKASEM/AFP via Getty Images

Expensive private schools become many Syrian students' only option

As public schools struggle to accommodate an increasing number of students, thousands of students in the Aleppo area are being pushed into private schools.

The Arc of Triumph in the ancient city of Palmyra, Syria, circa 1880.

Russia begins restoration of Arc of Triumph in Syria's Palmyra

Russia has begun the restoration of the Arch of Triumph, one of the historical landmarks in Palmyra, in cooperation with UNESCO.

Mansour Abbas, head of Israel's conservative Islamic Raam party, speaks in his capacity as Knesset deputy speaker during a plenum session on the state budget on Sept. 2, 2021.

Mansour Abbas’s star turn rattles Israeli politics

Also: Syrian Kurdish leader not worried — yet — about Turkish invasion (exclusive).