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Syria

October 21, 2026

Damascus 2:28 am

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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

Kurdish infighting complicates Sinjar offensive

In the wake of a massive assault on the Islamic State for the city of Sinjar, Iraq, there is speculation about how disagreements among Kurdish factions will play out.

Lebanon continues to struggle under weight of Syrian refugee crisis

Lebanon is struggling to cope with the Syrian displacement crisis amid weak international action.

Has Syria been a military success for Iran?

Iran was willing to negotiate its nuclear situation with world powers, but it wants everyone to know it is far from ready to abandon its strategic interests in the region.

'Under 50' Iranians killed in Syria

An Iranian security official has addressed several hot-button topics in the media, including the implementation of the nuclear deal and the rising Iranian death toll in Syria.

A driver stands next to the trucks lined at the Oncupinar borger crossing on the Turkish-Syrian border in the southeastern city of Kilis January 13, 2012. Since Turkey late last year took the side of anti-government demonstrators seeking the downfall of President Bashar al-Assad, truckers plying the route between the border and the Syrian city of Aleppo have made an easy target for Assad loyalists. Picture taken January 13, 2012. To match feature TURKEY-SYRIA/TRADE REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: TRANS

Despite ongoing war, is trade between Turkey, Syria rebounding?

As the number of Syrian companies set up in Turkey increases, the trade between the two countries is returning to prewar levels.

Turkey's Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu addresses the audience during a conference in Ankara, Turkey, September 4, 2015. Davutoglu said on Friday a new perspective was needed to achieve global growth given dwindling dynamism in emerging market countries. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTX1R2CK

Will G-20 summit improve Erdogan’s international image?

Europe’s need for Turkey’s cooperation in the refugee crisis is forcing EU leaders to moderate their tone against Erdogan’s undemocratic ways.

Selahattin Demirtas, co-chairman of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), talks to the media before casting his ballot at a polling station during a general election in Istanbul, Turkey November 1, 2015. Turks began voting on Sunday amid worsening security and economic worries in a snap parliamentary election that could profoundly impact the divided country's trajectory and that of President Tayyip Erdogan. The parliamentary poll is the second in five months, after the ruling AK Party founded by

Kurds in postelection Turkey: Silver lining or tough times?

The Kurdish peace process, which Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan once described as frozen but not dead, is not likely to thaw soon.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin (2nd R) meets with Iran's President Hassan Rouhani (2nd L) on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, September 28, 2015. REUTERS/Mikhail Klimentyev/RIA Novosti/Kremlin ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS. - RTX1SY30

Why Iran and Russia aren't as closely aligned on Syria as you might think

Despite the shared short-term goals that have currently united them on Syria, Iran and Russia's differences over Syria's future are bound to lead them into conflict.

A man holds scarves bearing the names and images of Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu (R) and President Tayyip Erdogan as supporters of the AK Party gather to wait for the arrival of Davutoglu in Istanbul, Turkey November 3, 2015. Erdogan said on Monday the nation had voted for stability in a parliamentary election that saw the AK Party he founded win almost 50 percent of the vote, and said the world should respect the result. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RTX1UIYW

Is Erdogan waging a war of choice against the PKK?

Erdogan and the AKP win by emphasizing the threat from Kurdish terrorism; Palestinian martyrs on the rise with intifada violence; Al-Monitor backs UNICEF education program for Syrian children.

Russian involvement in Syria brings about another siege for Aleppo

The second siege of Aleppo was more than the sad tale of a once-proud Syrian city.

Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan attends a Republic Day ceremony at Anitkabir, the mausoleum of modern Turkey's founder Ataturk, in Ankara, Turkey, October 29, 2015. Turkey marks the 92nd anniversary of the Turkish Republic. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTX1TSXY

Syria's 'moderate jihadis' elated by Turkish election results

The Syrian opposition wants to know what kind of support it can expect from the AKP government after the AKP won solid support in the recent election.

After 52-year ban, Syrian Kurds now taught Kurdish in schools

Schools in Syrian regions controlled by the Kurdish PYD and its allies are for the first time teaching the Kurdish language, a practice prohibited under Baathist rule.