US looks to Russia to avoid run-ins with Syrian troops in Deir ez-Zor

The Pentagon is considering expanding its de-confliction agreements with Moscow as Bashar al-Assad’s forces and US-backed rebels both turn their attention to eastern Syria.

Iraq

Will Abbas be forced to choose war against Israel?

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is starting to understand that the current situation cannot go on for much longer and soon he will have to choose between peace and war.

Palestine

Palestinian refugees to return to Damascus camp after four years in the dark

While the return of civilians to Damascus’ Sbeineh refugee camp has already begun, the road to full recovery for these camps remains long.

Syria

Despite tension, Syrian refugees find sympathy in Lebanese villages

While Lebanon’s impoverished border towns are generally more concerned with pre-existing hardships than those brought by Syrian refugees, some xenophobia has crept into these areas.

Lebanon

Rights organizations rally to reveal fate of Syria’s disappeared

As the number of disappeared has reached more than 75,000 people in Syria, Amnesty International launched a campaign urging the Syrian authorities and armed groups to reveal their fate.

Lebanon

Iran-Syria soccer game surrounded by major controversy

Iranian authorities stir controversy by allowing Syrian women to attend a soccer World Cup qualifier while refusing to let in Iranian women.

Syria

Ankara must go through US, Russia to get to YPG

Recent developments on the ground suggest that any new Syria incursion by Turkey could encounter unexpected obstacles.

Syria

Hundreds of Russian children found in Mideast orphanages

Children ripped from their homes in Russia and secreted off by relatives said to be fighting for the Islamic State are now turning up abandoned in the Middle East.

Iraq

Pro-Iranian Shiite factions lose popular support in Iraq

The recent agreement between Hezbollah and a group of pro-Islamic State fighters to arrange their evacuation from the Lebanese-Syrian border to the Syrian-Iraqi border triggered an outburst of public anger against Hezbollah and Iraqi factions fighting alongside Hezbollah on Syrian territory for years.

Iraq

Iran plays Hamas card

Iran's improved relations with Turkey, Qatar and Hamas send a message to the region.

Palestine

Israel slow to recalibrate on Syria

Israel's original assessment of the Syrian war is no longer relevant, and the state must make strategic changes to face the threat of the regime, which is likely to remain in power with Iran's patronage.

Israel

Turkish-backed rebels exchange daily fire with SDF in Aleppo

In the northern countryside of Aleppo, the Syrian Democratic Forces, an alliance of Arab and Kurdish fighters, retaliates to the shelling from Turkish-backed Syrian rebels, pushing civilians to leave their homes.

Syria