Syria Conflict

Amjad Kurdo / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

Explainer

Syria’s energy push could soon get a major boost from Chevron: What to know

The country's leaders are seeking to translate a flurry of oil and gas agreements into concrete investments and rebuild an industry devastated by more than a decade of war, sanctions and isolation.

Defendant Wassim al-Assad appears before the Fourth Criminal Court during the opening session of his trial in Damascus on June 24, 2026.

Syria opens trial of Wassim al-Assad, cousin of ousted president: What we know

The trial follows another session in the case against Atef Najib, also a cousin of former President Bashar al-Assad, as Syrian authorities continue prosecuting figures linked to the former regime and its remnants.

Germany's forward #26 Deniz Undav (2nd R), an ethnic Kurd, scores his team's first goal during the 2026 World Cup Group E football match between Germany and Ivory Coast at the Toronto Stadium in Toronto on June 20, 2026.

Culture

Amid political setbacks, Kurds shine at the World Cup

Kurdish players and clubs are making rare global gains on football’s biggest stage, offering a brief lift amid ongoing political setbacks across the region.

OMAR HAJ KADOUR/AFP via Getty Images

Syria announces direct flights to Amsterdam as Europe links expand

The head of Syria’s General Authority of Civil Aviation and Air Transport announced that after years of suspension, Syrian Airlines would restart direct services between Damascus and Amsterdam.

Latest News

Syria’s Sharaa says he had ‘multiple discussions’ with Trump on Lebanon, favors dialogue

US President Donald Trump meets Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in the Oval Office, Washington, DC, Nov. 10, 2025.

Syrian Kurd commander Kobane kicks off European tour amid scrutiny from Damascus

Mazloum Abdi (Kobani), commander-in-chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), speaks with AFP during an interview in the countryside outside the northwestern Syrian city of Hasakah, in the province of the same name, on January 24, 2019. - Any deal between Syria's Kurds and the Damascus regime should respect the "special status" of Kurdish-led forces who fought the Islamic State (IS) group, Kobani said. The SDF control around a third of Syria after expelling jihadists from a large northeastern swathe of t

Analysis

Why Trump’s push for Syria to confront Hezbollah is an unlikely bid

Syria's President Ahmed al-Sharaa is welcomed by Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides in Nicosia on April 24, 2026, on the sidelines of a European summit.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

'Let Syria take care of Hezbollah': Trump criticizes Israel, leans on Sharaa to help in Lebanon

EVIAN-LES-BAINS, FRANCE - JUNE 16: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a bilateral meeting with the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on the sidelines of the G7 summit, on June 16, 2026 in Evian-les-Bains, France. Leaders from the Group of 7 (G7) countries convened in Evian, France, near the Swiss border, for their annual summit to discuss challenges to peace and security for Ukraine and Europe, the situation in the Middle East, and other geopolitical issues. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Get

A member of Syria's transitional government security forces calls the names of persons queueing up at a center for handing over small arms and security registration with the new authorities, in Damascus, on Dec. 24, 2024.

Pro-Assad militias clash with Syria security in Latakia: What we know

The incident, which left two members of the transitional security forces dead, marks the latest violent challenge to the new rulers' grip on power in Syria.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gestures as he speaks during the presentation of the Justice and Development Party's (AK Party) election manifesto at the AKP Congress Center in Ankara, on Jan. 30, 2024.

Turkey’s ruling party hits out at Israel’s support for Kurdish-led SDF

Ankara breaks its silence as Erdogan’s ruling party delivers the first official response to Israel’s support for the Kurdish-led SDF.

TOPSHOT - A Syrian rebel fighter (C) looks on as he stands at an inspection checkpoint for incoming vehicles before a Russian flag and Russian soldiers behind manning the entrance of the Russian-leased Syrian military base of Hmeimim in Latakia province in western Syria on December 29, 2024. (Photo by AAREF WATAD / AFP) (Photo by AAREF WATAD/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Russia eyes Libya as military substitute for Syria? Not so fast, say Libyans

Despite its ambitions to relocate military assets from Syria to Libya following Assad's fall, Russia faces significant challenges in Libya's complex political landscape, limiting its ability to achieve this goal.

Mohamed Eljarh

By Mohamed Eljarh

TOPSHOT - Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) reviews the honour guard as he welcomes Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman (R) during an official ceremony at the Presidential Complex in Ankara, on June 22, 2022. - Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler took a big step out of international isolation on June 22, 2022, paying his first visit to Sunni rival Turkey since the 2018 murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the kingdom's Istanbul consulate. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/

Analysis

Saudi Arabia, Turkey find early common ground on Syria, will it last?

Despite supporting the armed opposition in the earlier parts of the Syrian civil war, Turkey and Saudi Arabia soon found themselves competing in Syria. Assad’s fall opens a new chapter.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

A fighter affiliated with Syria's new administration gestures with his rifle in Syria's western coastal city of Latakia on December 26, 2024. Syria's new authorities launched an operation in a stronghold of ousted president Bashar al-Assad on December 26, with a war monitor saying three gunmen affiliated with the former government were killed, a day after angry protests erupted in several areas around Syria over a video showing an attack on an Alawite shrine that circulated online. (Photo by AAREF WATAD / A

Feature

As sectarian tensions rise, what future awaits Syria's Alawite community?

In post-Assad Syria, the Alawite community, long associated with the fallen regime, faces deepening insecurity and sectarian anxiety.

Danny Makki

In London, reporting on Syrian politics and culture

Syrians living in Turkey carry their belongings towards the Cilvegozu border gate to cross into Syria after after Syrian rebels ousted President Bashar al-Assad on Dec. 13, 2024 in Cilvegozu, Turkey.

Analysis

As Turkey eases ban, Syrian refugees can now visit before deciding to return

Turkey is allowing one adult per Syrian family to return after visiting their homeland, but experts warn that easing restrictions may not lead to significant refugee returns amid ongoing uncertainties in Syria.

Ezgi Akin

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

TOPSHOT - Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati waves from the stage next to Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni during the Atreju political meeting organised by the young militants of Italian right wing party Brothers of Italy (Fratelli d'Italia) on December 14, 2024 in Rome. (Photo by Filippo MONTEFORTE / AFP) (Photo by FILIPPO MONTEFORTE/AFP via Getty Images)

Lebanon's Mikati set to meet Sharaa in Syria in wake of Aoun's election

Najib Mikati’s visit, the first in 15 years, comes amid pressure in Lebanon to release Islamists imprisoned during the civil war and just after the election of President Joseph Aoun.

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed reiterated the UAE's firm position in safeguarding Syria's unity and sovereignty during talks with Asaad Al Shibani, Syrian Foreign Minister, in Abu Dhabi. Photo: Wam

Analysis

Despite aversion to Islamism, UAE slowly embraces change in Syria

Abu Dhabi is adjusting to the idea of a more Islamist governance in Syria as it cautiously navigates the new reality after Assad's fall and a growing influence for Turkey.

Jennifer Gnana

By Jennifer Gnana

In Dubai, reporting on Gulf energy policy and politics

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani (R) and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in Tehran on Jan. 8, 2024.

Khamenei pushes for US withdrawal from Iraq in meeting with Sudani

Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani’s trip to Tehran is his first since the ouster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and comes ahead of Donald Trump’s return to the White House.

US President Donald Trump and Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) take part in a joint press conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC on November 13, 2019. President Donald Trump greeted his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the White House for a high-stakes meeting Wednesday that underlined his claim to be ignoring the impeachment drama unfolding simultaneously in Congress. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)

As Trump praises Erdogan, Turkey says ready to take control of ISIS prisons in Syria

The top Turkish diplomat said Turkey is prepared to take control of the Islamic State detainee camps as he downplayed Israeli support for the Syrian Democratic Forces.

US army soldiers queue to board a plane to begin their journey home out of Iraq from the Ain al-Asad Air Base west of the capital, Baghdad, on Nov. 1, 2011.

Exclusive

Syria's new Islamist rulers reduce Iraq's appetite for US troop withdrawal

Iraq's prime minister is heading to Iran to discuss concerns about Syria's new rulers, as Baghdad is considering the delay of the US troop withdrawal to address regional instability.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman walks to welcome France's president (not pictured) ahead of their meeting in Riyadh, on Dec. 2, 2024.

Analysis

In Syria outreach, Saudi Arabia eyes regional realignment against Iran

By taking the lead in hosting Syria's new foreign minister, Riyadh is eyeing strategic opportunity to fill the US void, counter Iran’s waning influence and stabilize ties with Damascus through aid, partnerships and engagement with Islamist factions.

Jennifer Gnana

By Jennifer Gnana

In Dubai, reporting on Gulf energy policy and politics