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

Palmyra

Syria

May 5, 2026

Damascus 2:30 am

11°C

Crops of wheat and barley in Terbol village on May 10, 2022, in Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.

Analysis

MENA wheat importers face food security risks as Hormuz crisis festers

Home to many of the world's largest wheat importers, the Middle East and North Africa face acute food security risks as the US-Israel-Iran war disrupts global fertilizer flows and pushes up prices.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

A young man stands in the entrance of tunnels that were used by the ISIS and the Assad's regime for fighting. Tadamon, Syria, February 7, 2025. (Photo by Raghed Waked / Middle East Images / Middle East Images via AFP) (Photo by RAGHED WAKED/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

Syria arrests Amjad Youssef, Tadamoun massacre perpetrator: What to know

Amjad Youssef appeared on video, allegedly killing dozens of civilians in 2013; he is the latest member of the Assad regime to be captured by the new Syrian government.

President of Syria Ahmed al-Shara arrives for the 80th session of the UN’s General Assembly (UNGA) at UN Headquarters on Sept. 23, 2025 in New York City.

Analysis

'Is it worth it?' Syria's Sharaa faces backlash over Missy Elliott performance

Backlash erupts after dancers perform to Missy Elliott’s “Work It,” exposing the tightrope between Sharaa’s outreach to the West and pressure from his Islamist base.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Syria's President Ahmed al-Sharaa arrives ahead of a meeting with Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer at 10 Downing Street in central London on March 31, 2026.

Syria’s Sharaa makes fourth visit to Saudi Arabia, first since Iran war: What to know

The visit comes in light of the deepening economic relations between Syria and Saudi Arabia post-Assad.

Latest News

How Syria's border opening with Iraq redefines Turkey-Kurd balance

Members of Iraq's security forces stand guard on the the al-Rabia border crossing with Syria on April 20, 2026.

EU to restore Syria cooperation pact ahead of May talks: What to know

Tobias SCHWARZ / AFP via Getty Images

Sharaa distances Syria from Iran war, says Israel talks ongoing: What to know

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Turkish Presient Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the Antalya Diplomatic Forum in Turkey April 17, 2026.

Analysis

Is Syria’s Sharaa poised to outdo Turkey in formalizing gains for Kurds?

Kurdish people waving Kurdistan flags gather to celebrate Nowruz on the hill of Urkesh in the countryside of Amuda in northeastern Syria on March 18, 2026. Nowruz, meaning "new day," is an ancient festival that marks the start of spring and the new year on the vernal equinox, which usually falls on March 20 or 21. It is celebrated by more than 300 million people worldwide and has been observed for over 3,000 years across regions including the Middle East, Central Asia, the Caucasus and parts of Eastern Euro

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

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

Tunisia's Foreign minister Taieb Baccouche (L) speaks with Imam of the municipal Drancy mosque in Seine-Saint-Denis, Hassen Chalghoumi (2R) on March 18 mars 2015 in front of the Tunisian embassy in Paris where people gathered in solidarity with victims of the Tunis's museum attack. 22 were killed including 20 tourists by two gunmen at Bardo International Museum on March 18, 2015 in Tunis. AFP PHOTO/FRANCOIS GUILLOT (Photo credit should read FRANCOIS GUILLOT/AFP/Getty Images)

Tunisia’s new government shifts foreign policy

The Tunisian Foreign Ministry’s announcement that it would send a consul to Syria has been refuted by the president as the new government reconfigures Tunisia’s regional alliances.

This undated image released by the U.S. Government shows the steel liner for the reinforced concrete reactor vessel before it was installed at the suspected Syrian nuclear reactor in Syria. The White House on April 24, 2008 broke its official silence on the mysterious September 6, 2007 Israeli air strike. "We are convinced, based on a variety of information, that North Korea assisted Syria's covert nuclear activities," White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said in a statement. The statement came after intelli

Syria agrees to return highly enriched uranium to China

The recent decision by Syria to modify a small HEU-fueled research reactor will advance the possibility of a Middle East free of the civilian use of weapons-grade uranium.

Lebanese military soldiers man a checkpoint, near the site of an ambush where gunmen killed at least six Lebanese soldiers, in the mountainous border town of Ras Baalbek December 3, 2014. Gunmen killed at least six Lebanese soldiers when they attacked an army patrol near the border with Syria on Tuesday, the army and a Lebanese security source said. The source said the gunmen crossed from Syria to the mountainous border town of Ras Baalbek after dark and ambushed the patrol. Clashes between gunmen and a spe

Lebanese army advances to secure border

The Lebanese army has received a substantial arms shipment from the United States, allowing it to advance against terrorist groups in the mountainous border regions.

Cherry trees are in full bloom in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington April 10, 2013. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS) - RTXYGQL

Defense bill takes aim at Iran

The must-pass legislation requires Pentagon strategy for countering Iran's "growing unconventional warfare capabilities."

Radical Muslim cleric Abu Qatada (R) listens to Islamist scholar Sheik Abu Mohammad al Maqdisi during a celebration after his release from a prison near Amman September 24, 2014. Abu Qatada walked free from a Jordanian jail on Wednesday after being cleared of charges of conspiring in a plot to attack tourists - his second acquittal this year following a long extradition process from Britain. The state security court in the capital Amman ruled that the charges against the radical preacher - providing spiritu

Jordan's Salafists switch allegiance to IS

As militant alliances continue to shift, Jordan's strategic stance on Salafist groups has become ever more complex.

A supporter of the Jamiat Ahle Hadith organization holds a picture of Saudia Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz during a rally in support of Saudi Arabia over its intervention in Yemen, in Lahore April 19, 2015. . REUTERS/Mohsin Raza

Saudi Arabia’s deepening isolation in Yemen

Saudi Arabia faces a quagmire in Yemen; a US-Iran “catalogue of cooperation” after a nuclear deal; Iranian activists skeptical on human rights progress; Israel unnerved by Russian decision on missile sale to Iran; the Good Friday massacre in Aleppo; is Erdogan shifting from sectarianism?

A rebel fighter of al-Jabha al-Shamiya (the Shamiya Front) is seen through the scope of a new locally made cannon named "al-Qannas" (Sniper) before launching it towards forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad stationed in Hanano barracks in Aleppo April 8, 2015. The cannon is decorated with two mock rockets. REUTERS/Abdalrhman Ismail - RTR4WJOI

Aleppo's rebels brace for IS assault

Syrian rebels have been going above and beyond to ready their cities in the countryside of Aleppo for a possible attack by the Islamic State.

Free Syrian Army fighters use their smartphones behind sandbags in the Al-Maysar neighbourhood of Aleppo May 3, 2014. REUTERS/Jalal Al-Mamo (SYRIA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST MILITARY POLITICS SOCIETY CONFLICT) - RTR3NNM2

Seeking Internet access, Syrians turn to Turkey's wireless network

Wireless networks from Turkey are spreading in opposition-controlled neighborhoods in Aleppo, with cheap prices compared with local Internet services that are regularly disrupted.

A woman reacts while civil defence members carry her dead child after what activists said was shelling by warplanes loyal to Syria's president Bashar Al-Assad in Aleppo's rebel-controlled Bab Al-Nairab district April 12, 2015. REUTERS/Abdalrhman Ismail - RTR4X059

Aleppo's Christians face rising violence

The recent happenings in Syria are far from promising as conflicts intensify and fighting increases.

Belgian delegation expresses support for Assad

A Belgian parliamentary delegation, which met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on March 24, said that Assad is "protecting Christian cities and Christians from fundamentalist attacks."

A member of Jordanian security walks near the main Jaber border crossing in the Jordanian city of Mafraq, April 2, 2015, as smoke rises on the Syrian side after violence broke out near the border. Jordan said it had temporarily closed its border crossing with Syria on Wednesday because of violence on the other side of the frontier, a move it described as a precautionary measure. Mainstream Syrian rebels seized the Nasib border crossing with Jordan from the Syrian government on Wednesday, the leader of one o

Syrian border closure deals blow to Jordan economy

The Free Syrian Army has taken over the strategic border crossing of Nasib, a main trade route between Jordan and Syria, pushing the Jordanian government to seek alternative transport options and export markets.

Veiled women walk past a billboard that carries a verse from Koran urging women to wear a hijab in the northern province of Raqqa March 31, 2014. The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has imposed sweeping restrictions on personal freedoms in the northern province of Raqqa. Among the restrictions, Women must wear the niqab, or full face veil, in public or face unspecified punishments "in accordance with sharia", or Islamic law. REUTERS/Stringer (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT RELIGI

Radicalized Western mothers lead children into Islamic State

Many Western women have joined the Islamic State, often bringing their children along with them to Syria, where they train and go to school.