Syria - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Palmyra

Syria

June 19, 2026

Damascus 11:00 am

28°C

Hassan Akkad speaks about fleeing Syria in 2015 and his work as a filmmaker at a BAFTA event, Sept. 2023.

Culture

In Syria, detention of Hassan Akkad raises alarm about free expression under Sharaa

Akkad, a British-Syrian filmmaker, was detained Wednesday night after his campaign questioning the whereabouts of funds allegedly pledged for relief, reconstruction and community initiatives across Syria.

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

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

Commander of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces Mazlum Kobane is on a European tour and will likely meet French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot in Paris.

Latest News

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

Amberin Zaman

Chief Correspondent

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Jared Szuba

Defense and Security Correspondent

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

Beatrice Farhat

Associate Editor (Lebanon)

In Beirut, reporting on regional news, culture, conflict

Danny Makki

In London, reporting on Syrian politics and culture

Ali Hashem

In Doha, reporting on Iran, regional politics, conflict

Cagatay Cebe

In Istanbul, reporting on security and counterterrorism

Israeli soldiers ride an army jeep during a patrol along Israel's border with Lebanon near the northern village of Avivim July 3, 2013. Israel is bolstering its forces on the once-quiet frontier with Syria where it believes Lebanese Hezbollah militants are preparing for the day when they could fight Israel. Picture taken July 3, 2013. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (ISRAEL - Tags: MILITARY POLITICS) - RTX11IMI

Al-Qaeda now frontline threat to Israel

With gains in Syria, Lebanon and Egypt, al-Qaeda and its affiliates threaten Israel more than ever.

Syrian foreign minister calls for national unity government

In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, Walid Moallem, Syria's minister of foreign affairs and expatriates, said that the Syrian National Coalition's rejection of a resolution condemning terrorism was "unfortunate and strange."

A man carrying a wounded woman runs from the site of explosions near the Iranian embassy in Beirut November 19, 2013. Two explosions targeting the Iranian embassy hit the Lebanese capital Beirut on Tuesday killing at least 23 people, including Iranian cultural attache Ebrahim Ansari, and damaging buildings around the embassy compound, Lebanese sources said. REUTERS/Issam Kobeisy (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS DISASTER) - RTX15JSM

Are UN Security Council anti-al-Qaeda terror statutes properly enforced?

The UN Security Council has established a regime for a travel ban, asset freeze and arms embargo against the al-Qaeda network since 1999, but new circumstances bring about serious doubts if such a regime is still functioning.

Palestinian students gather in the campus of Al-Aqsa University in Gaza City on February 21, 2013. The university has denied reports that it has decided to impose a "strict" Islamic dress code on female students. AFP PHOTO/MOHAMMED ABED (Photo credit should read MOHAMMED ABED/AFP/Getty Images)

Palestinian refugees from Syria struggle to attend Gaza's universities

Palestinian university students who fled the violence in Syria are facing many difficulties in the Gaza Strip, as the authorities have backtracked on promises to exempt them from fees.

Women walk past as Lebanese army soldiers, gather at the site of Tuesday's explosion, in the Haret Hreik area in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital Beirut January 22, 2014. A suicide bomber killed four people on Tuesday in a residential neighbourhood of southern Beirut known for its support of Shi'ite military and political group Hezbollah, security sources said. REUTERS/Sharif Karim (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX17PH5

Residents of Beirut’s southern suburbs live in fear of attacks

Following a string of attacks by extremist groups targeting the mostly pro-Hezbollah southern suburbs of Beirut, locals in this area carry on with their lives, although with tightened security measures.

Palestinian workers build houses for Jewish settlers in the West Bank settlement of Ma'ale Adumim July 26. Building on Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip more than doubled in the first quarter of this year, Israeli Radio said on Sunday. - RTXI53F

Settlement mayor: Renouncing Jordan Valley will destroy Likud

Ma'ale Adumim settlement Mayor Benny Kasriel says, ''Anyone who'll concede the Jordan Valley will find himself out of the Likud Party.''

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan addresses members of parliament from his ruling AK Party (AKP) during a meeting at the Turkish parliament in Ankara January 28, 2014. Erdogan, keen to maintain economic growth ahead of an election cycle starting in two months, has been a vociferous opponent of the higher borrowing costs sometimes needed to bolster currencies, railing against what he describes as an 'interest rate lobby' of speculators seeking to stifle growth and undermine the economy. REUTERS/Umit Bek

Erdogan visit to Iran to address Syria, economic ties

The visit of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Tehran will offer an opportunity to defuse tensions on Syria while expanding economic relations.

Pope Francis waves before releasing doves during the Angelus prayer in Saint Peter's square at the Vatican January 26, 2014.
REUTERS/Alessandro Bianchi (VATICAN - Tags: RELIGION) - RTX17V3O

Pope's statement in Davos a rare moment of hope

Pope Francis' statement read at Davos was a counterbalance to political unrest and economic uncertainty around the world.

U.N. special envoy for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi speaks to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (R) during a news conference after the Geneva-2 peace talks in Montreux January 22, 2014. An international conference on Syria ended on Wednesday, with Ban calling on both Syrian delegations to work sincerely for a solution to the nearly three-year-old conflict. REUTERS/Jamal Saidi (SWITZERLAND - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX17Q4I

Brahimi saves his energy for Geneva III

The Geneva II conference may not achieve even minor agreements, much less peace.

Kurdish President Massoud Barzani (C) and Iraqi President Jalal Talabani open a ceremonial valve during an event to mark the official start of oil exports from the autonomous region of Kurdistan, in the northern Kurdish city of Arbil June 1, 2009. Iraq's Kurdistan region said on Monday it hoped to be producing 1 million barrels per day of oil within the next 2-3 years, despite discord with the Arab-led government in Baghdad over Iraq's oil wealth. REUTERS/Safin Hamed/Pool (IRAQ CONFLICT POLITICS ENERGY BUS

Russia's Kurdish dilemma

Russia seeks to place its Kurdish policies in the broader context of a changing Middle East.

A man stands near a burning motorbike at the site of a car bomb attack at the Bab al-Hawa border crossing between Syria and Turkey, in Idlib January 20, 2014. Two car bombs hit a rebel-held border post in the northwest Syrian province of Idlib on Monday, opposition activists and fighters said, killing at least 10 people and closing the frontier. The Bab al-Hawa crossing is held by a rebel alliance called the Islamic Front, which have been fighting with the al Qaeda-linked Islamic State in Iraq and the Levan

Turkey deals with terrorist blowback on Syria

Turkey may be resetting its regional policies in response to popular discontent and the threat from terrorist groups operating in Syria.

Men react as others rush at the site of a car bomb attack at the Bab al-Hawa border crossing between Syria and Turkey, in Idlib January 20, 2014. Two car bombs hit a rebel-held border post in the northwest Syrian province of Idlib on Monday, opposition activists and fighters said, killing at least 10 people and closing the frontier. The Bab al-Hawa crossing is held by a rebel alliance called the Islamic Front, which have been fighting with the al Qaeda-linked Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a s

Turkey under pressure over jihadists on border

The recent terrorist bombing at the border and the acrimonious exchange between the Turkish and Syrian foreign ministers at Geneva II hints at the extent to which Turkey has become embroiled in the Syria conflict.