Analysis Turkey bets on US deconfliction as Israel widens Syria red lines As Washington pushes a new deconfliction mechanism between Turkey and Israel, the Jewish state shows little incentive to accept tighter constraints on its freedom of action in Syria, experts say. By Ezgi Akin , Rina Bassist
Analysis Israel fears Turkey’s Syria ambitions and doubts Trump will stop them Israeli officials remain skeptical of Turkish and Syrian denials over Ankara’s military ambitions in Syria, warning that a deeper Turkish foothold could threaten Israel’s security and strain its ties with Washington. By Ben Caspit In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense
Turkey signals restraint as war of words with Israel escalates over Syria The Turkish president’s top communications aide says Ankara will not be drawn into the Israeli government's “games” as Washington pushes a Turkey-Israel-Syria deconfliction mechanism. Turkey
Syria’s FM pays Pakistan first visit in 19 years amid new regional alignments Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani is paying his office's first visit to Pakistan in nearly two decades after Islamabad, Ankara and Riyadh signed a joint defense pact. Syria
Syria announces capture of senior ISIS official near Manbij: What to know By Jared Szuba In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military
What we know about Israeli strikes on Syrian air base tied to Turkey By Adam Lucente In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change
Amid coronavirus concerns, some US-funded aid work paused in northeast Syria The United States intends to focus more on stabilizing Deir ez-Zor and Hasakah provinces as it suspends humanitarian operations in northeast Syria due to COVID-19. Syria
Syrian students turn to e-learning amid pandemic The opposition-led government in Syria has activated distance learning for students in the areas under its control to help curb the spread of the coronavirus in schools and universities, though some students aren't able to benefit from the program. Syria
Intel: What’s next for Russia-Turkey cooperation after Erdogan, Putin call? On April 1, Russian President Vladimir Putin held a phone conversation with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan to discuss potential cooperation in tackling the COVID-19 pandemic, the next steps in joint efforts in Syria as well as the developments in Libya. Syria
Is COVID-19 changing Astana allies' dynamics in Syria? The coronavirus outbreak in Syria may give Russia an opportunity to limit the Iranian presence. Syria
Is Turkey ready to take on jihadis in Syria’s Idlib? While Turkey and Russia seek to maintain a cease-fire in Idlib, the Syrian government and jihadi groups want to resume battles. Syria
Archive Upfront from Mar 26, 2020 Turkey appears to want more than Syria’s oil Like Moscow and Washington, Ankara seems to be coveting the oilfields of Deir ez-Zor in Syrian Kurdistan, which Kurds fear would give Turkey an opening to take over the entire Rojava area. Syria
Intel: Pompeo calls on Syria to release US prisoners amid coronavirus fears Secretary of State Mike Pompeo today urged President Bashar al-Assad to release all “arbitrarily detained” Syrians and US citizens amid fears that the coronavirus pandemic is primed to rapidly take hold and spread throughout the war-torn country. Originals
SDF calls for humanitarian truce in Syria amid coronavirus crisis Following the lead of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces call for a cease-fire in order for all warring parties to combat COVID-19 instead. Syria
Intel: What was Russia’s defense minister doing in Syria? Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu just paid a visit to Damascus for talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Syria
Kurdish-led northeast under lockdown as Syria announces first coronavirus case The Kurdish-led autonomous administration declares a two-week curfew in an effort to keep the coronavirus out of northeast Syria; Turkey cuts off water supply to Hasakah. Syria
Coronavirus in Syria: a catastrophe in the making The Syrian government has stepped up measures to tackle the spreading novel coronavirus amid growing fears among Syrians of the pandemic’s catastrophic spread in light of their harsh living and humanitarian situation. Syria
Meet Syria’s female doctors Syrian women stepped up and took on medical work to fill the void left by men in the health care sector in northern Syria. Syria
