Syria - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Palmyra

Syria

October 20, 2026

Damascus 6:21 am

14°C

Trucks loaded with goods wait to cross over to Syria

Analysis

How Hormuz crisis is reshaping economic ties between Iraq and Syria

Iraq and Syria are expanding trade and energy cooperation, but security risks, economic challenges and longstanding mistrust raise questions about whether their growing partnership can endure.

Shelly Kittleson

By Shelly Kittleson

In Baghdad, reporting on Iraqi politics

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

Analysis

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

The Israeli leader revealed that he spoke with the Syrian president last year, but stalled talks and Israel's fortification of a security zone on Syrian land underscore his mistrust of Sharaa.

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

An attendee walks past signage displayed inside the venue for the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG) at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center (QSNCC) in Bangkok on October 14, 2026. (Photo by ANTHONY WALLACE / AFP via Getty Images)

Syria to rejoin Arab group at IMF, leaving Russian-led constituency

Syria will rejoin the Arab constituency at the International Monetary Fund beginning Nov. 1 and has applied for membership in the EBRD.

Latest News

Explainer

Syria arrests Mihrac Ural, ex-Assad militia head also wanted by Turkey

Mihrac Ural, who was also known as Ali Kayali, was arrested

In first, Israel’s Netanyahu says he held call with Syria’s Ahmed al-Sharaa

Analysis

Why Syria and Iraq are taking different approaches to armed groups

Demonstrators ride through a street while waving Syrian flags

Shelly Kittleson

By Shelly Kittleson

In Baghdad, reporting on Iraqi politics

Culture

Syria reopens Aleppo's 1,300-year-old Great Umayyad Mosque after 13 years

A view of the Great Umayyad Mosque during the reopening ceremony, Oct. 8, 2026.

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

Chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces Lieutenant General Sergei Rudskoy attends a briefing in Moscow, Russia, March 18, 2016. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin - RTSB317

What Russia's Syria shift means for Moscow-Riyadh ties

Russia’s likely gradual and partial military withdrawal from Syria may minimize one of the irritants in the Russian-Saudi relationship, but it won’t address their fundamental differences.

Free Syrian Army fighters walk in al-Makman village on the outskirts of al-Shadadi town, Hasaka countryside, Syria February 19, 2016. REUTERS/Rodi Said - RTX27SJH

Raqqa brigade continues to raise flag of Syrian revolution

Abu Issa, commander of Liwa Thuwar al-Raqqa, spoke to Al-Monitor about the ongoing fight against the Islamic State and being committed to the principles of the Syrian revolution.

Displaced people from the Yazidi religious minority, fleeing violence from forces loyal to the Islamic State in Sinjar town, ride on a truck as they are evacuated from Mount Sinjar in northern Iraq with the help of members of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), as they make their way towards Newrooz camp in Syria's al-Hasakah province, August 13, 2014. A U.S. mission to evacuate Yazidis trapped on Mount Sinjar by Sunni militant fighters is far less likely after a U.S. assessment team sent there on

So IS is committing genocide. Now what?

Congress expects the secretary of State's determination to mean something.

Israel's Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Gadi Eizenkot speaks at the annual Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) conference in Tel Aviv January 18, 2016. REUTERS/Baz Ratner - RTX22X9B

Can Israel influence the 'day after' in Syria?

Israeli experts fear that the Russian pullout of Syria will provide Hezbollah with influence along the border of the Golan Heights.

Three men that Democratic Forces of Syria fighters claimed were Islamic State fighters sit on a pick-up truck while being held as prisoners, near al-Shadadi town, Hasaka countryside, Syria, February 18, 2016. REUTERS/Rodi Said - RTX27LV4

How Kurds treat Islamic State prisoners

In the Kurdish-controlled areas of Syria, special courts prosecute the Islamic State fighters captured during the battles between the organization and the People's Protection Units.

How terror attacks drive politics in Ankara

Turkey is increasingly becoming the scene of Rojava-inspired Kurdish resistance.

Russian servicemen prepare a Russian Sukhoi Su-30SM fighter jet before a departure for a mission at the Russian Hmeimim military base in Latakia province, in the northwest of Syria, on December 16, 2015.
Russia began its air war in Syria on September 30, conducting air strikes against a range of anti-regime armed groups including US-backed rebels and jihadist groups. Moscow has said it is fighting and other "terrorist groups," but its campaign has come under fire by Western officials who accuse the Kremli

How Iran views the Russian withdrawal from Syria

Iranian media and analysts speculate on Russia's sudden decision to pull some of its troops from Syria and what this means for the fate of the cease-fire.

Russian President Vladimir Putin waves to the Federal Assembly after a signing ceremony at the Kremlin in Moscow March 18, 2014. Putin and two Crimean leaders signed a treaty on Tuesday on making the Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula a part of Russia. The signing in the Kremlin came two days after Crimeans voted overwhelmingly to secede from Ukraine and join Russia in a referendum condemned by the Ukrainian government, the United States and the European Union as illegitimate. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov (RUSSIA - Ta

Putin to Assad: Do svidaniya

Russian President Vladimir Putin is saying "do svidaniya" — goodbye — to Syria, announcing the start of a Russian military withdrawal that Putin said he hoped would bolster Syria peace talks underway in Geneva.

Iranian Revolutionary Guard Commander Qassem Soleimani (L) stands at the frontline during offensive operations against Islamic State militants in the town of Tal Ksaiba in Salahuddin province March 8, 2015. Picture taken March 8, 2015. REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT POLITICS) - RTR4TTZ2

Qasem Soleimani defends Hezbollah

In a rare speech, the head of Iran's Quds Force defended his country against accusations that it might be looking for trouble in the region.

Erdogan intensifies assault on independent media

US State Department calls on Turkey to respect "democratic values"; Israel considers Erdogan a "lost cause," sees Putin winning "on all counts."

Iranian Revolutionary Guard Commander Qassem Soleimani uses a walkie-talkie at the frontline during offensive operations against Islamic State militants in the town of Tal Ksaiba in Salahuddin province March 8, 2015. Picture taken March 8, 2015. REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT POLITICS) - RTR4TU0N

The IRGC's plan to win hearts and minds

Pro-regime culture portrays Qasem Soleimani as a brave, strong and mysterious commander as a key component in the campaign to recuperate trust in the IRGC among Iranians and to portray it as a formidable force in the region.

A Turkish Gendarme officer detains a man believed to be a smuggler as Syrian refugees who are prevented from sailing off for the Greek island of Lesbos by dinghies wait in the background near a beach in the western Turkish coastal town of Dikili, Turkey, March 5, 2016. REUTERS/Umit Bektas TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTS9EC6

Is Turkey's plan to stop flow of refugees legal?

Turkey's offer to the European Union to stop the flow of refugees to Greece is compelling — but is it legal?