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Syria

November 8, 2026

Damascus 9:42 pm

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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 woman makes her way through the rubble of damaged buildings after airstrikes by pro-Syrian government forces in the rebel held town of Dael, in Deraa Governorate, Syria February 12, 2016. REUTERS/Alaa Al-Faqir - RTX26N2E

Turkey threatens fragile Syria peace accord

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says the United States is responsible for "sea of blood" in Syria as Turkey attacks Syrian Kurds; Ankara and Riyadh raise specter of ground operations in Syria.

Members of the Saudi security forces take part in a military parade in preparation for the annual Haj pilgrimage in the holy city of Mecca September 28, 2014. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed (SAUDI ARABIA- Tags: RELIGION MILITARY) - RTR482AN

7 things to consider before sending troops to Syria

By supporting a Saudi ground invasion of Syria, the United States would be aiding and abetting the expansion of terrorism as well as pushing Iran and Russia toward threatening the very viability of the House of Saud.

Turkish soldiers stand guard as a Syrian refugee boy waits behind the border fences to cross into Turkey on the Turkish-Syrian border, near the southeastern town of Akcakale in Sanliurfa province, Turkey, June 5, 2015. More than 3,000 Syrians fleeing clashes between Islamic State and Kurdish fighters have crossed into Turkey since Wednesday, a Turkish government official said. Kurdish forces are trying to drive the militants out of Tel Abyad, in Syria's Hassakah province, close to the Turkish border town of

Can Turkey return as a player in Syria?

The siege of Aleppo and resulting refugee flow offer an opportunity for Turkey's return as a player in Syria, but realities on the ground won't make it easy.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and UN Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura (L-R) attend a news conference after the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) meeting in Munich, Germany, February 12, 2016. REUTERS/Michael Dalder - RTX26KGX

Will US, Russia be able to turn 'words on paper' into action in Syria?

The United States and Russia, meeting with international powers, announced that they had agreed on a plan for rapid humanitarian aid delivery to seven besieged areas in Syria and to try to work out a temporary truce to go into effect after one week.

A Sunni Muslim rebel fighter who was trapped with other fighters in Zabadani, arrives at Bab al-Hawa near the Syrian-Turkish border December 29, 2015. A U.N. operation to evacuate around 450 Syrian fighters and their families from two besieged Syrian areas was completed on Monday with the arrival of planes carrying them to Beirut and Hatay airport in Turkey, U.N. and airport sources said. REUTERS/Ammar Abdullah - RTX20DJB

Why some Syrian fighters transferred to Turkey vow to return

Although Ahrar al-Sham is associated with al-Qaeda, the people of Zabadani who were forced to flee to Turkey when the regime took over consider it a moderate group and continue to support it.

Battle for Aleppo rages on after peace talks suspended

Faced with their toughest challenge to date, Syrian rebels are losing ground in Aleppo ahead of the Geneva III peace talks slated to resume Feb. 25.

Syrian Kurds' agenda simmers on back burner

Though Syria’s Kurds have been calling for the establishment of a federal state, just like their counterparts in Iraq, their demands may never reach the international peace platforms.

Saudi Arabia turns to Turkey

Following the visit of a Turkish delegation to Saudi Arabia, the kingdom hopes to establish economic and military ties with Turkey to counter the expanding Iranian influence in the region.

Turkey's Chief of Staff General Hulusi Akar whispers in President Tayyip Erdogan's ear during the funeral of Sergeant Okan Tasan, one of the soldiers killed during an attack on a military convoy and clashes on Sunday in the mountainous Daglica area of Hakkari province, at Kocatepe Mosque in Ankara, Turkey, September 10, 2015. Pro-Kurdish politicians, including cabinet ministers, attempted to march to a town in southeast Turkey on Thursday to protest a week-old curfew there, as their party came under fire fr

Can Erdogan bully Turkey's armed forces into invading Syria?

Following his failure in Aleppo, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s eagerness for a military intervention in Syria is stronger than ever, but will the Turkish military acquiesce to his plans?

Internally displaced Syrians fleeing advancing pro-government Syrian forces carry their belongings near the Syrian-Turkish border after they were given permission by the Turkish authorities to enter Turkey, in Khirbet Al-Joz, Latakia countryside February 2, 2016. REUTERS/Ammar Abdullah - RTX2552H

How fighters are filtering across the Syrian-Turkish border

Turkey is handling tens of thousands of refugees trying to cross its border from Syria, but isn't sure how it will deal with the accompanying militants, their families and IS-affiliated fighters.

Syria's Sharia courts

Sharia courts founded by armed groups in Syria are currently the sole judicial power in the areas outside the regime’s control.

Shi'ite fighters sit on the top of Spiral Minaret of the Great Mosque in Samarra, February 3, 2016. Picture taken February 3, 2016. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad - RTX25EVC

Obama's anti-IS envoy: Shiites saved Iraq

President Obama's envoy praises all sides in a bid to keep the coalition together.