Why Iran, Saudi Arabia keep locking horns on Syria

The window of opportunity for regional dialogue provided by the Iran nuclear deal appears wasted as Tehran and Riyadh stick to their positions.

Saudi Arabia

Kurds demand answers after battles in Cizre

Controversy simmers over what exactly happened in Cizre as the town emerges devastated from a weeklong curfew, imposed with the stated aim of uprooting Kurdish militants entrenched in residential areas.

Syria

Villages abandoned as Syrians flee northern Aleppo

The northern countryside of Aleppo has been emptied as thousands fled to surrounding areas following the intensification of the Islamic State attacks in August.

Syria

Iraq sees exodus of minorities

Large waves of emigration are dramatically depleting Iraq’s minority populations, especially Christians, with dire consequences for the country's future diversity.

Iraq

Kurdish National Council: We must remove the top of the pyramid in Syria

In an interview with Al-Monitor, the head of the Kurdish National Council, Ibrahim Biro, talked about his party’s opposition to the Syrian regime, and stressed that a federal system is needed in Syria to integrate all of Syria’s sectarian and ethnic components.

Syria

How Erdogan exploits Syrian refugees

Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan had hoped a wave of Syrian refugees, created with assistance to the Islamic State, would force NATO to act against Syria's Bashar al-Assad, and when that failed, he allowed the refugees to move westward to pressure Europe.

Israel

Congress rethinks anti-Assad stance

Senate Democrats are beginning to question regime-change goals amid Islamic State gains.

United Arab Emirates

Refugees risk it all

Even daily tragedies at sea don’t stop Syrian refugees from risking their lives and those of their families trying to get to Europe from Turkey.

Syria

Russia deepens Turkey’s Syrian impasse

Moscow’s increasing military support for the Assad regime makes a reassessment of Ankara’s Syria policy essential.

Syria

Why the Gulf isn't to blame for Syrian refugee crisis

Oil-rich Gulf states are defending their record in assisting Syrian refugees as world opinion grows more hostile to their perceived indifference.

Legacy: Gulf

Syrian regime displaces Zabadani residents

Syria’s Madaya is under siege and suffering from an influx of people displaced by the regime's attacks on Zabadani.

Syria

Opposition-regime swap deal in Syria frozen until further notice

A Lebanese official told Al-Monitor that the swap deal discussed between the Syrian army and Hezbollah and the opposition fighters concerning Zabadani and two Shiite villages in Idlib province has been postponed until the outcome of King Salman’s visit to the United States unfolds.

Lebanon