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Syria

November 7, 2026

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Syria foils Hezbollah-linked plot to attack Homs refinery: What to know

Syrian authorities have intensified a crackdown against Hezbollah’s alleged plans to launch attacks inside Syrian territory as well as smuggling attempts.

BING GUAN/AFP via Getty Images

Lawmakers urge Commerce Dept to ease Syria investment restrictions

Syria may be off the terrorism blacklist, but the Commerce Department’s export controls have yet to catch up.

Muzna Al-Atrash

Explainer

Meet Muzna al-Atrash, Syria's new Druze adviser for peace affairs

Atrash, from the Suwayda province and a member of the Druze community, will advise Damascus on peace affairs as it looks to assert authority in the south.

People inspect the damage at a site targeted by airstrikes

Analysis

How Syria is balancing public anger, regional stability after Jordan's strikes

Shelly Kittleson

By Shelly Kittleson

In Middle East, reporting on regional politics

Latest News

Analysis

Gaza progress, Syria pullback: What Turkey wants from Israel’s next government

Demonstrators hold a banner reading "Free Gaza, free world"

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Syria flash floods kill at least 5, force hundreds of families from camps

Mohammed Mir / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

Interview

US oil firm HKN aims to double output in Syria's formerly Kurdish-run fields

A general view shows the Awad oil field in the eastern Qamishli countryside in northeastern Syria, on Feb. 15, 2026.

Matthew Zais

Matthew Zais

HKN vice president for government affairs

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

A Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighter stands near who he said were Islamic State fighters held prisoners, north of Raqqa city, Syria March 8, 2017. REUTERS/Rodi Said TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC15149E3320

Congress expands Pentagon aid in Syria to cover Islamic State prisoners

The Senate’s new defense authorization bill gives the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces greater leeway to build prisons for Islamic State detainees.

A view shows a new S-400 "Triumph" surface-to-air missile system after its deployment at a military base outside the town of Gvardeysk near Kaliningrad, Russia March 11, 2019. Picture taken March 11, 2019. REUTERS/Vitaly Nevar - RC11938EDE40

Despite European protection offers, Turkey still wants S-400

Turkey is unlikely to be swayed from buying Russian S-400 missile defense systems, even if some European countries continue their defense of Turkish air space.

How Russia plans to take part in building Syria's IT sector

As Syria seeks to restore some of its damaged IT facilites and build "an information society" in the country, Russian companies consider opportunities to chip in.

U.S. President Donald Trump and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan attend the start of the NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium July 11, 2018. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque - RC117DD2EDF0

Erdogan seeks lifeline from Trump to salvage US-Turkey ties

It will take Donald Trump to close a deal with Turkey on a Syrian "safe zone."

Turkish soldiers walk at the Atmeh crossing on the Syrian-Turkish border, as seen from the Syrian side, in Idlib governorate, Syria May 31, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi - RC17B93A8C20

Intel: How Russia is trying to calm Turkey-Syria tensions

Russia announced today that it had helped negotiate a cease-fire in rebel-controlled Idlib province this week as rising tensions between Turkey and Syria threaten to escalate into open conflict.

A man walks past damaged buildings in the city of Idlib, Syria May 24, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi - RC1D4BDCBD50

Russia, Turkey broker shaky cease-fire in Syria’s Idlib

Within hours of the announcement of a truce, Syrian forces are accused of firing on both rebel targets and a Turkish army outpost, but even a tentative respite is welcome as renewed clashes have displaced hundreds of thousands of people since April.

People gather during the funeral of Abdelbasset al-Sarout, 27, who died from wounds he sustained battling in northwest Syria, in the border town of al-Dana, Idlib, Syria June 9, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashaw - RC16B44F3FF0

The Syrian funeral that divided Turkey

A funeral ceremony for a controversial Syrian militant, known as “the singer of the revolution,” has sparked indignation in Turkey.

A Syrian government soldier walks past strewn mortar shells in the village of Qalaat al-Madiq, some 45 kilometres northwest of the central city of Hama, on May 17, 2019. - Syrian government forces a week prior had recaptured the northwestern town on the southwestern edge of the jihadist-controlled Idlib region, from around which jihadists and allied rebels were launching rockets on their Russian ally's key airbase. The capture of the town of Qalaat al-Madiq comes after weeks of intensified air strikes and s

Ex-FSA fighters recruited by Damascus to fight opposition in northern Syria

Syrian government forces are resorting to former Free Syrian Army fighters who reached reconciliation agreements with the regime, in its offensive in northern Syria.

A general view of Hassan Ahmed al-Aoul's house between rubble and damaged buildings in Aleppo's Salaheddine district, Syria April 13, 2019. Picture taken April 13, 2019. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki - RC19CA5CE4B0

Can Russia plug through US sanctions to reconstruct Syria?

Russia seeks to work around US sanctions to help reconstruct Syria, but some of Damascus' own policies may be unhelpful in this endeavor.

Iranian Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri meets with Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus, Syria in this handout released by SANA on January 29, 2019. SANA/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. REUTERS IS UNABLE TO INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY THIS IMAGE - RC1FA4E62B00

Iran focuses on political solution while keeping military option open in Syria

While Iran’s plan to overcome the current challenges in Syria focuses on diplomatic and political measures, Tehran is preparing for all scenarios, including military escalation.

A column of armoured Turkish military vehicles drives on a patrol along a road in the de-militarised zone in Syria's northern Idlib province near the town Saraqib on March 8, 2019. - In September 2018, Syrian rebel backer Turkey and regime ally Russia inked a deal to set up a buffer zone in northern Syria. Russia halted an imminent regime offensive many feared could lead to the Syrian conflict's worst bloodbath yet, in exchange for which Turkey was to remove jihadists from the edges of the region. (Photo by

Turkey’s risky route in Idlib

Turkey is struggling to maintain a balance with Russia as it takes action to block the Syrian army at Idlib.

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during his meeting with heads of foreign companies on the sidelines of the Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF-2019) in St. Petersburg, Russia, June 7, 2019. Yuri Kochetkov/Pool via REUTERS - RC1E84F20B40

Beneath tough exterior, Putin may be ready to deal on Iran

Russian President Vladimir Putin seems to hold all the cards in the region, but is Moscow ready to show its hand?