Syria Conflict

TO GO WITH STORY BY NATACHA YAZBECK (FILES) A picture dated June 13, 2003 shows Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his brother Maher (L) attending their father's funeral in Damascus on June 13, 2000. As Bashar al-Assad's regime fights to stay in power, one man has emerged as the symbol of the dynasty's brutal military might -- the president's feared younger brother Maher. AFP PHOTO/RAMZI HAIDAR / AFP PHOTO / RAMZI HAIDAR (Photo credit should read RAMZI HAIDAR/AFP via Getty Images)

Was Maher al-Assad, brother of ousted Syrian president, spotted in Moscow?

Maher al-Assad is wanted for war crimes and reportedly fled to Russia by way of Iraq as rebel forces took over Syria.

A US soldier keeps watch during a patrol in Syria's northeastern city Qamishli, in the Hasakeh province, mostly controlled by Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), on Jan. 9, 2025.

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US troops in Syria's Kurdish northeast will remain in single base near Rmeilan oil fields

The consolidation comes as tensions rise between Iran and Israel, heightening risks for remaining US forces.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Members of Turkish Police Special Forces secure the area near the Interior Ministry on Oct. 1, 2023.

Turkey detains dozens of ISIS suspects in raids tied to Syria-based network

A nationwide sweep targeted the group's financial and propaganda networks as Ankara steps up efforts to counter the jihadi extremist group in Syria.

Cryptocurrency giant Binance opens trading access to Syria: What to know

Binance’s announcement comes after the United States and the European Union lifted most economic sanctions on Syria last month.

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Syria mandates burkinis for women at public beaches: What to know

A Tunisian woman wearing a "burkini", a full-body swimsuit designed for Muslim women, walks in the water with a child on August 16, 2016 at Ghar El Melh beach near Bizerte, north-east of the capital Tunis. (Photo by FETHI BELAID / AFP) (Photo by FETHI BELAID/AFP via Getty Images)

Interview

US believes Syria’s Sharaa at risk of assassination, Trump envoy says

US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack meets Syrian President Ahmed Sharaa in Damascus, on May 29, 2025.

Tom Barrack

Tom Barrack

US special envoy for Syria

UAE’s Al Habtoor Group to send business delegation to Syria: What to know

Khalaf Ahmad al-Habtoor, Chairman of the al-Habtoor Group, attending the World Premiere of La Perle in Dubai

What to know about 1,500-year-old Byzantine tomb uncovered in Syria

tomb

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (C) shakes hands.

Russia looks to reconcile Turkey, Syria as talks kick off in Moscow

Russia seeks to normalize relations between Ankara and Damascus amid four-way talks in Moscow.

Members of the Syrian army deploy in the al-Rashidin 1 district, in Aleppo's southwestern countryside, on Feb. 16, 2020.

Three Assad advisers indicted in France for Syria war crimes

Sending a strong signal to the Assad regime, a French court decided to indict three senior intelligence advisers for crimes against humanity and war crimes.

US army soldiers stand near an armoured military vehicle on the outskirts of Rumaylan in Syria's northeastern Hasakeh province, bordering Turkey, on March 27, 2023. (Photo by Delil souleiman / AFP) (Photo by DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP via Getty Images)

US strike kills senior Islamic State leader in Syria

US Central Command accused Khalid ‘Aydd Ahmad al-Jabouri of plotting attacks in Europe and Turkey.

A F-15 fighter jet takes part in an aerial display during the graduation ceremony of Israeli air force pilots at the Hatzerim base in the Negev desert, on June 23, 2022.

Fourth suspected Israeli strike on Syria in five days kills two

Two Iranian officers were killed by Israeli missiles late last week.

Villagers walk to collect water after troops from the Syrian Democratic Forces, a coalition of Kurdish and Arab forces, retook a town on November 11, 2015 near Hasaka, in the autonomous region of Rojava, Syria. The armed forces of the predominantly Kurdish region in northern Syria have been retaking territory from ISIL extremists with the help of airstrikes from the U.S. led coalition. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)

Two Islamic State suicide bombers killed in Syria amid group’s resurgence

There has been an uptick in IS attacks throughout Syria in recent months.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attends the "APEC Leaders' Informal Dialogue with Guests" event during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Bangkok on November 18, 2022. (Photo by ATHIT PERAWONGMETHA / POOL / AFP) (Photo by ATHIT PERAWONGMETHA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Saudi continues regional reshuffle in hosting Egypt's Sisi, opening to Assad

The meeting between President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman comes as Egypt faces a deepening economic crisis and the region witnesses major realignments.

JALAA MAREY/AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Israel's shadow war with Iran escalates in Syria with attacks, drone interception

Israel has reportedly carried out seven raids over the past month and nine since the beginning of the year inside Syria. Israel on Sunday intercepted a drone coming from Syria.

Lilach Shoval

By Lilach Shoval

Israeli soldiers take part in a military exercise near the town of Katzrin, in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights on the border with Syria, on September 21, 2022. (Photo by JALAA MAREY / AFP) (Photo by JALAA MAREY/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel downs flying object from Syria as Iran vows revenge

Israel has struck Syria three times in the past four days, killing officers in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

US army soldiers stand near armoured military vehicles on the outskirts of Rumaylan in Syria's northeastern Hasakeh province, bordering Turkey, on March 27, 2023. (Photo by Delil souleiman / AFP) (Photo by DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Pentagon: 8 Iran-backed fighters killed in Syria strikes

An Iranian drone strike against the US military in Syria last week led to significant hostilities.

Milley

Top US general advocates targeting Iran’s IRGC Quds Force after Syria drone attack

Biden’s airstrikes in Syria highlight paradox of deterring Iran-backed groups without triggering further escalation.

A handout picture provided by the Iranian Army's official website on September 11, 2020, shows an Iranian Simorgh drone carrying a weapon during the second day of a military exercise in the Gulf, near the strategic strait of Hormuz in southern Iran. - The Iranian navy began on September 10 a three-day exercise in the Sea of Oman near the strategic Strait of Hormuz, deploying an array of warships, drones and missiles. One of the exercise's objectives is to devise "tactical offensive and defensive strategies

Iran adheres to ambiguity over attack on US base in Syria

Iranian officials continue to neither confirm nor deny responsibility for a recent deadly attack on US forces in Syria that has been blamed on Tehran-backed proxies.

Seized drugs, including Captagon, are displayed for the media in the town of Marea, in the northern Aleppo countryside, on May 24, 2022, following clashes among different Turkey-backed factions in Syria. - A decade of appalling civil war has left Syria fragmented and in ruins but one thing crosses every frontline: the drug fenethylline, commercially known as captagon. The stimulant -- once notorious for its association with Islamic State fighters -- has spawned an illegal $10-billion industry that not only

Breaking | Last Updated: May 23, 2023, 2:50 pm

New US sanctions target Syria's Captagon trade linked to Assad

The US Treasury Department imposed sanctions on six individuals in Syria and Lebanon, including two cousins of President Bashar al-Assad, who are linked to the Syrian regime's Captagon production and export.