Islamic State

Members of Syrian security forces at the entrance of the al-Hol camp in the desert region of Hasakah province which holds around 24,000 people, including some 6,200 women and children from around 40 nationalities on Jan. 21, 2026 in Al Hasakah, Syria.

Feature

Syrian Kurds say US ignored pleas for help as ISIS detainees turned on them in al-Hol

Chaos at al-Hol during clashes between Kurdish forces and Damascus underscored the widening security vacuum amid Kurdish claims of US abandonment.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

In this handout photo in an undisclosed location, US Airmen prepare to load GBU-31 munition systems onto F-15E Strike Eagles within the US Central Command area of responsibility, Dec. 18, in support of Operation Hawkeye Strike.

US launches 5 airstrikes in Syria on suspected ISIS sites: What to know

A series of five airstrikes over the past week in Syria comes as the US military increasingly relies on Damascus' forces to contain Islamic State remnants.

Syrian Democratic Forces fighters stand on a pick-up truck to provide security during an inspection of SDF positions on the Tell Brak frontline in Syria on Jan. 26, 2026.

France's role in Syria-SDF agreement: What to know

French diplomatic sources highlight the role played by Paris in recent months in reaching an agreement between the Sharaa government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces.

Syrian government troops patrol the streets of Tabqa, in Raqqa province, on the southwestern banks of the Euphrates, Jan. 18, 2026.

Analysis

Syria’s Kurdish pullback hands Damascus a win — and new ISIS risks

Cooperation with the United States in the battle against ISIS could prove both a blessing and a curse for the Syrian government.

Cagatay Cebe

By Cagatay Cebe

In Istanbul, reporting on security and counterterrorism

Latest News

Feature

ISIS brides face uncertain future as Damascus clashes with Syria’s Kurds

Roj Camp

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Analysis

Could US shift on Syria’s Kurds unlock progress with Turkey?

Syrian government forces ride on the roof of a vehicle as they deploy after crossing the Euphrates River in the province of Deir Ezzor, eastern Syria, on Jan. 19, 2026.

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Iraq to prosecute ISIS detainees transferred from Syria: What to know

Children and women, relatives of suspected Islamic State jihadists, walk inside al-Hol camp in the desert region of Syria's northeastern Hasakah province, on Jan. 21, 2026.

US military airlifts Syria ISIS prisoners to Iraq after SDF retreat: What to know

RAQQA, SYRIA - JANUARY 19: Syrian government forces are deployed near Al-Aqtan prison on January 19, 2026 in Raqqa, Syria. Yesterday, the Syrian government announced that a nationwide ceasefire deal had been reached with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), who had been clashing with government forces in recent weeks. The Kurdish-led force, a long-time ally of the United States in the fight against ISIS, had controlled large swaths of northwest Syria during the years of the country's civil war. T

Jared Szuba

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

Turkish flag flutters at Turkey's border gate, as pictured on Syria side, overlooking the ruins of buildings destroyed during fightings with the Islamic State militants in Kobani, Syria October 11, 2017. Picture taken October 11, 2017. REUTERS/Erik De Castro - RC1E48BC4870

US pushes to reintegrate militants after Islamic State fight

A senior State Department official told Al-Monitor the administration is working to help Middle Eastern and African countries reintegrate thousands of fighters who joined the Islamic State and its affiliates.

U.S. Democratic Presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard greets supporters after filing her declaration of candidacy papers to appear on the 2020 New Hampshire primary election ballot at the State House in Concord, New Hampshire, U.S., November 5, 2019. REUTERS/Mike Segar - RC1696ABFE70

Democratic leader pours cold water on Tulsi Gabbard’s bid to force Syria withdrawal

The House’s No. 2 Democrat dealt a major blow to Tulsi Gabbard’s effort to force President Donald Trump to pull the remaining US troops out of Syria.

A view of burnt vehicles after the U.S.-backed forces said they had captured Islamic State's last shred of territory, in the village of Baghouz, Deir Al Zor province, Syria, March 23, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer - RC12424ED500

Report: China, Russia worried about militants' return from Syria

Beijing and Moscow are concerned that citizens who left to fight with jihadi groups in Syria could stoke radicalization at home following their return.

Acrimony erupts ahead of NATO summit as Turkey stalls defense plans

Turkey is impeding a military plan to defend Poland and the Baltics to force the alliance to support its military operation in Syria. The spat underscores political divisions that are shaking NATO ahead of its anniversary summit this week.

Turkish soldiers stand on a watch tower at the Atmeh crossing on the Syrian-Turkish border, as seen from the Syrian side, in Idlib governorate, Syria May 31, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi - RC1525F30880

Despite stepped-up military actions, Turkey still faces jihadi threats

Ankara’s past haphazard policies complicate crackdown on IS; Iran hard-liners gain from protests; Syrian Kurds may not give up sales of Syrian oil to Damascus.

An Iraqi soldier is seen at the Iraqi-Syrian border, after it has been reopened for trade and travel, in Al Qaim, Iraq September 30, 2019. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani - RC1BBBE58A40

Amid ongoing unrest, Iraq refuses to receive IS detainees from Syria

Though Iraq previously said it would receive and prosecute foreign Islamic State fighters from Syria, it has now rescinded its offer.

IS designates Turkey as its next base

The Islamic State has selected Turkey as its next base to reorganize, recruit and plan.

Can EU's fear of terrorists give Turkey clout in ocean drilling?

Following his threats to flood Europe with Syrian refugees, the Turkish president is now trying to use Islamic State suspects as leverage.

Turkey’s fight against IS riddled with black holes

Ankara may boast about how many Islamic State members it has captured, but its handling of IS suspects on the ground, especially in deportation centers, speaks of a slipshod attitude to the problem.

IS kills priests in Syria as Turkish-backed fighters express IS sympathies

Two Armenian Catholic priests are killed by the Islamic State near Hasakah and pro-Turkish Syrian fighters are reported to have hoisted the Islamic State flag in Ras al-Ain.

An Islamic State flag flies over the custom office of Syria's Jarablus border gate as it is pictured from the Turkish town of Karkamis, in Gaziantep province, Turkey August 1, 2015. Karkamis is a Turkish town of 10,500 people that sits directly opposite the border post. Shut for more than a year, the military sealed the crossing with a breeze block wall a few months ago. Behind it, just inside Syria, the black flag of Islamic State flaps in the breeze. Karkamis lies on the northeastern edge of a rectangle o

Turkey-Europe ties brace for fresh rift over stateless IS militants

The fate of foreign Islamic State militants captured in Syria is looming as a big headache for Turkey as many of them are now stateless, expelled from the citizenship of European countries.

U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard participates in the She the People Presidential Forum in Houston, Texas, U.S. April 24, 2019. REUTERS/Loren Elliott - RC150AA15E20

Tulsi Gabbard lays groundwork to force divisive vote on Syria withdrawal

Presidential hopeful Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, could trigger a House vote forcing President Donald Trump to withdraw US troops from Syria — but it’s dividing the anti-war movement.