Analysis Kurds, Damascus step back from brink as SDF signs fresh deal with Syrian government After intense US-led diplomacy, Syria’s interim government and the Kurdish-led SDF agreed to a ceasefire and phased integration, averting all-out conflict. By Amberin Zaman Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture
Interview YPG spokesman: Syrian forces' strategy is to isolate Kurdish towns and cities In an interview with Al-Monitor, YPG spokesman Siyamend Ali said Kurdish forces were successfully repelling advances by the Syrian army, while Damascus accused the Kurds of launching unprovoked attacks. Siyamend Ali YPG spokesman
Turkey detains nurse over hair-braiding video in support of SDF Authorities say the nurse’s social media post amounted to terror propaganda, while critics argue that her symbolic protest falls under freedom of expression as tensions over Syria spill into Turkey’s fragile peace process. Turkey
Analysis Turkey’s Syria gains come with risks as Damascus pushes Kurdish integration Turkey has benefited from the Syrian government’s rollback of the Kurdish-led forces, but whether those gains translate into lasting security, refugee returns and domestic de-escalation will depend on political inclusion in Damascus. By Barin Kayaoglu In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security
Analysis Could US shift on Syria’s Kurds unlock progress with Turkey? By Ezgi Akin In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO
Trump praises Syria's Sharaa after truce reached with SDF By Elizabeth Hagedorn In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights
US Syria pullout may be more than Turkey asked for The haste with which President Donald Trump appears to be dumping the Americans’ Syrian Kurdish allies is not necessarily what Turkey’s president had hoped for and will likely pose new problems for Ankara. Originals
Is Erdogan’s brinkmanship forcing Washington to climb down? Ankara is pleased with Trump’s decision to pull out of Syria, but it greets this decision with a mixture of caution and skepticism. Syria
US diplomats shaken by Trump decision to exit Syria US President Donald Trump’s abrupt decision to withdraw from Syria humiliates US envoys who have said the United States would maintain a presence indefinitely to prevent the return of the Islamic State and to counter Iran’s influence. Israel
US to withdraw from Syria, leaving Kurdish allies to face Turkish offensive alone President Donald Trump tweeted that the war against Islamic State is over and his administration has confirmed American soldiers would leave Syria immediately, a significant diplomatic win for Turkey that follows US approval of a major weapons deal with Ankara. Syria
US official speaks out against possible Turkish offensive in Syria After Iraqi Kurdistan-backed Rojava Peshmerga are sent to the Turkish-Syrian border, Turkish officials inveigh against the action and what it represents. Iraq
How does Turkey's threatened Syria invasion play elsewhere? As Turkey prepares for a possible offensive against Kurdish militias in Syria, Moscow is watching for any mistakes that multiple players, including the Unites States and the United Arab Emirates, might make in their efforts to deter the operation. Syria
Sinjar road reconnects estranged Yazidis and Kurds with Baghdad The opening of a strategic road in Iraq's Kurdistan Region — closed since the Kurds' ill-fated independence referendum in September 2017 — could be a prelude to a reset in ties between Erbil and Baghdad. Iraq
Turkey's 'Olive Branch' takes root in Syrian olive business Kurdish olive growers in Afrin, Syria, complain bitterly that Turkish authorities who control the area aren't doing anything to stop massive exploitation and armed extortion that is costing the local oil economy $100 million. Syria
Erdogan says Turkish troops to march into northeast Syria Some experts think Erdogan's threat to send troops into northeast Syria is a trial balloon that has more to do with Turkey's March 31 local elections than anything else, but others take his statements more seriously. Syria
Iraqi Kurdistan bans pro-PKK party amid Turkish pressure Turkey exerted its political and economic pressure on Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government to close the headquarters of political parties that share the ideology of the Kurdistan Workers Party. Iraq
Businesspeople intervene in bitter ties between Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan Turkish businesspeople have launched a campaign to restore ties between Turkey and the Kurdistan Regional Government, which were hit hard last year after Kurdistan's independence referendum. Iraq
Have relations between Turkey and Europe reached a turning point? The decision by the European Court of Human Rights on a jailed Kurdish leader might be marking a turning point in ties between Turkey and the European Union. Turkey
