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Syria

July 10, 2026

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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

Francois Delattre, ambassador and permanent representative of France to the United Nations, speaks during the UN Security Council meeting on Syria, New York, Feb. 27, 2020.

France seeks foothold in northeast Syria

France has extended an invitation to the various components of northeast Syria, namely the Kurds, to visit Paris as the latter seeks more influence in the area.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) speaks to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) as they attend a press conference on Oct. 10, 2016, in Istanbul. Putin visited Turkey for talks pushing forward ambitious joint energy projects as the two sides try to overcome a crisis in ties.

Turkish-Russian ties marked more by rivalry than cooperation today

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan believed Russia would provide him leverage against the United States and Europe after Turkey’s ties with the West took a nosedive.

Vehicles wait to cross into Syria at the recently reopened Naseeb border post in Daraa province, at the Syrian-Jordanian border south of Damascus, Nov. 7, 2018.

Is opening of Jordanian-Syrian crossing politically motivated?

Jordan reopened the Naseeb-Jaber crossing with Syria to restore trade movement, although some do not see any economic benefits for the Syrian government.

BAKR ALKASEM/AFP via Getty Images

New Kurdish group in Syria attacks Turkish-backed opposition in Afrin

The Afrin Liberation Forces, which has escalated attacks against the Turkish-backed opposition in the Aleppo countryside, is being secretive about the sources of its support, weapons and training.

DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP via Getty Images

Fighting between Syria's Kurdish forces, pro-Assad militia enters fourth day

CENTCOM commander Gen. Kenneth McKenzie said the United States is "prepared to assist" the Kurdish-led forces to de-escalate clashes.

al-bab explosion

Security chaos prevails in FSA-controlled town of north Syria

Assassinations and attacks are on the rise in the Syrian city of al-Bab controlled by the Free Syrian Army, and the perpetrators remain unknown.

A Russian military police armored truck drives past a US military MRAP (Mine Resistant Ambush Protected) vehicle near the village of Tannuriyah in the countryside east of Qamishli in Syria's northeastern Hasakah province on May 2, 2020.

Syrian government reportedly building tribal force in Hasakah

Russia and Iran are seeking to build a tribal army within the Syrian Democratic Forces' areas in Hasakah to protect the regime’s survival near the sources of oil and agricultural wealth.

A truck carrying the first batch of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines arrives at Bab al-Hawa border crossing between Syria and Turkey in Syria's rebel-held northwestern Idlib on April 21, 2021.

Syria's Idlib receives first shipment of COVID-19 vaccines

Provided through the World Health Organization's COVAX program, the 53,800 AstraZeneca doses will go first to health care workers and first responders in the rebel-held territory.

Nadia Murad, an Iraq Yazidi once held captive by the Islamic State, speaks during a religious freedom summit at the US Department of State on July 16, 2019, in Washington, DC.

US government watchdog calls out Syria for religious freedom abuses

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) also recommended Egypt, Iraq and Turkey be added to the State Department's special watchlist for religious freedom offenders.

ATTILA KISBENEDEK/AFP via Getty Images

Syria stripped of voting rights by global chemical weapons watchdog

The French proposal to suspend Syria's "rights and privileges" in the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons followed repeated reports of government forces using chemical weapons against civilians.

Russian armored vehicles drive as part of a joint Turkish-Russian military patrol along the M4 highway, which links the northern provinces of Aleppo and Latakia, near Ariha in the rebel-held northwestern Idlib province, Syria, June 10, 2020.

Russia briefly withdraws from bases in north Aleppo, leaving SDF to face Turkey by itself

Russia briefly withdrew its forces and its military equipment from two bases in Tal Rifaat, only to return to them in the wake of understandings with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces that control the area and fear the advances of the Turkish-backed opposition.

Syrian women and children attend a ceremony to celebrate the last day of the school year in the rebel-held town of Azaz, in northern Syria, May 24, 2017.

Will Syrian women get wider representation in opposition?

The Syrian opposition is working to empower women and increase their participation at the political level, amid low female representation in official institutions.