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Syria

October 23, 2026

Damascus 3:57 pm

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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

A general view of the presidential palace is seen during a farewell ceremony for Outgoing Lebanese President Michel Sleiman in Baabda, near Beirut, May 24, 2014.
REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3QNB0

Lebanon: The summer when everything went wrong

Political, constitutional, livelihood and weather problems are happening simultaneously in Lebanon.

A street vendor waits for customers in Istanbul November 26, 2012. Through a decade of almost uninterrupted expansion, in which Turkey has established its economic and diplomatic clout as a Muslim democracy bridging Europe and the Middle East, the gap between the rich and poor has barely budged. Picture taken November 26, 2012. To match TURKEY-UNEMPLOYMENT/ REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT POLITICS) - RTR3AYYA

Syrian refugees aggravate Turkey’s unemployment problem

Syrian refugees working illegally at low wages are exacerbating already severe unemployment in Turkey.

Turkish trucks and tankers, shuttling between Turkey and Iraq, queue on a road leading to the Habur border gate in southeastern Turkey, before crossing into Iraq with their goods, February 23, 2008. Turkey's exports to Iraq jumped nine percent last year to $2.8 billion and its influence can be felt across northern Iraq in the form of supermarkets, consumer goods, construction firms and traders from all over Turkey. To match feature TURKEY-IRAQ/CONFLICT REUTERS/Fatih Saribas (TURKEY) - RTR1XKEF

Turkish truckers try to get on the road again

With the dangers and difficulties now inherent in transiting in Iraq and Syria, the Turkish transportation sector is looking for alternative routes to Middle Eastern markets.

A man purported to be the reclusive leader of the militant Islamic State Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has made what would be his first public appearance at a mosque in the centre of Iraq's second city, Mosul, according to a video recording posted on the Internet on July 5, 2014, in this still image taken from video. There had previously been reports on social media that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi would make his first public appearance since his Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) changed its name to the Islamic S

Did nostalgia for Islamic caliphate become a reality?

The Islamic State has exploited ideological tendencies of Salafist jihadists to establish its "Islamic caliphate."

Shiite volunteers from Hezbollah Iraq, who have joined the Iraqi army to fight against militants of the Islamic State, formerly known as the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), gather together in Baghdad, July 6, 2014. Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's coalition should withdraw its support for his bid for a third term and pick another candidate, Shi'ite Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr urged, amid parliamentary deadlock over the formation of a new government. Maliki has come under mounting pressur

Lebanese Hezbollah unlikely to intervene in Iraq crisis

Although some have expressed concerns that Hezbollah could intervene in Iraq to protect Shiite holy sites from Islamic State militants, a number of Lebanese politicians and sources close to Hezbollah dismiss this possibility.

Residents watch Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on a screen during his televised speech at a festival celebrating Resistance and Liberation Day, in Bint Jbeil May 25, 2014. The event commemorates the 14th anniversary of Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS ANNIVERSARY) - RTR3QT8E

Iraq events cause Hezbollah to go on full alert

The fall of western Iraq to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) has cut the contiguous bridge from Iran to Lebanon, and Hezbollah fears that ISIS may try to sneak through to Lebanon.

The words: ' Baath, Arabism, Unity, Freedom, Socialism' are seen on top of a damaged building that belongs to forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo, June 19, 2013. Picture taken June 19, 2013. REUTERS/Nour Kelze (SYRIA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS CONFLICT) - RTX10UMG

Russia banks on Syrian unity

As Moscow grapples with the changes in the region, it continues to support an inclusive peace process in Syria.

Mehdi Army fighters loyal to Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr stand during a military-style training in Najaf June 20, 2014. Iraqi forces were massing north of Baghdad on Friday, aiming to strike back at Sunni Islamists whose drive toward the capital prompted the United States to send military advisers to stiffen government resistance. REUTERS/Alaa Al-Marjani (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR3UW3C

Did Shiite fatwa save Baghdad from 'Islamic State'?

Iraqi Shiites have rallied to defend the capital from the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), with few visible signs of Iranian fighters.

Jordan boosts military presence on Iraq border

Jordanian officials say they can thwart any jihadist advance from Iraq.

Members of the Iraqi security forces fire artillery during the clashes with the predominantly Sunni militants from the radical Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in the town of Dalli Abbas in Diyala province, June 28, 2014. Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, the most influential Shi'ite cleric in Iraq, called on the country's leaders on Friday to choose a prime minister within the next four days, a dramatic political intervention that could hasten the end of Nuri al-Maliki's eight year rule. Picture take

The Syria disconnect in US Iraq policy

Iraq welcomes Syrian airstrikes on ISIS; Aleppo’s water crisis.

Russian soldiers unload a Russian Sukhoi SU-25 plane in al-Muthanna Iraqi military base at Baghdad airport in Baghdad, June 28, 2014. The first batch of Russian fighter jets arrived in Baghdad on Saturday to help Iraqi forces battle Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) fighters in the country's north. Picture taken June 28, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY TRANSPORT CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT) - RTR3W9NZ

Russia's military bid in Iraq

Moscow has seized an opening by delivering fighter jets to Iraq.

Syria's President Bashar al-Assad speaks during an interview with a German newspaper in Damascus, in this handout photograph distributed by Syria's national news agency SANA, June 17, 2013 . Europe will "pay the price" if it delivers arms to rebel forces in Syria, Assad said. REUTERS/SANA/Handout via Reuters (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT) ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS PICTURE IS DISTRIBUTED E

Will Assad reach out to 'national opposition' in Syria?

According to Syrian officials, the re-elected President Bashar al-Assad will likely carry messages of reform and rapprochement with the so-called “national opposition” in his July 17 address marking his third term.