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Syria

September 17, 2026

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Assala Nasri (C) attends the 2025 Joy Awards at The Venue, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 18, 2025.

Culture

Syrian singer Assala returns to Damascus stage after 15-year exile

The Syrian star, one of the Arab world’s most famous artists, had been in self-exile since 2011 after she openly supported the uprising against the since-ousted Assad government.

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa meets with the President of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, in the UAE capital, Abu Dhabi, Sept. 15, 2026.

Syria’s Sharaa talks economic ties with UAE leader: What to know

The UAE is moving to boost trade and investment ties with Syria amid the conflicts in the region and following initial caution in its dealings with Damascus.

Bakr ALkasem / AFP via Getty Images

Fuel price protests in Syria continue for second day: What to know

The Syrian government hiked fuel prices by more than 28%, prompting massive protests across at least eight provinces.

Two women stand before graffiti on the cemetery wall for victims of the chemical massacre, on Aug. 21, 2025 in Zamalka, Syria.

UN watchdog formally ends probe into Assad-era nuclear sites

The vote follows last month's visit by international inspectors to two suspected former nuclear sites in Syria.

Latest News

Syria destroys 42 bombs in chemical stockpile purge: What to know

Ali Haj Suleiman/Getty Images

Fresh fighting in Syria's Suwayda leaves one dead: What to know

Tribal and Bedouin fighters deploy in the western neighborhood of southern Syria's predominantly Druze city of Suwayda amid clashes with Druze gunmen on July 19, 2025.

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

Policemen secure a police compound in Ankara September 20, 2013. The police compound was struck by three rockets on Friday, Interior Minister Muammer Guler said. Two buildings belonging to the national police directorate in the district of Dikmen were hit, but no one was hurt, Guler said. A third rocket fell into the grounds. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CRIME LAW) - RTX13STZ

Attack on Ankara Police Station Leads to New Questions for AKP

An attack on police headquarters further deepens mutual suspicions between anti and pro-AKP Turks.

A supporter of Lebanon's toppled premier Saad al-Hariri waves a flag atop a lamp post during a rally in Martyrs' Square in Beirut March 13, 2011. Tens of thousands of supporters of Lebanon's toppled premier Saad al-Hariri rallied in Beirut on Sunday, calling for the Shi'ite group Hezbollah which ousted him to put its weapons under state control. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir (LEBANON - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS) - RTR2JUHF

Lebanon Support Group Deserves Support

The International Support Group for Lebanon, a critical initiative by President Michel Suleiman, will meet at the UN General Assembly on Sept. 25.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin (L) and Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (2nd R), with Foreign Ministers Sergei Lavrov of Russia (2nd L) and Ahmet Davutoglu of Turkey (R) in the background, applaud during a signing ceremony in Istanbul December 3, 2012. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3B64Z

Russia Rescues Turkey From Syrian Chemical Threat

The accord to destroy Syria’s chemical weapons has marginalized Ankara’s Syria policy while removing the threat against Turkey.

People gather at a site hit by what activists said was missiles fired by a Syrian Air Force fighter jet from forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad, at the souk of Azaz, north of Aleppo, January 13, 2013. REUTERS/Zain Karam (SYRIA - Tags: CONFLICT TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR3CEBT

Turkey’s Syria Nightmare Goes From Bad to Worse

Al-Qaeda-affiliated groups fighting the Syrian government are setting up camp on Syria’s border.

Israeli Minister Lapid Hears 'New Music' in Iran

In a recent CNN interview, Israeli Minister Yair Lapid seems to distance himself somewhat from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Iran.

France's President Francois Hollande (L) receives a report which review France's membership of NATO's integrated military command from former French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine (R) during a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, November 14, 2012. REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer (FRANCE - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR3ADPO

Vedrine: Threat of Force Key To US-Russia Initiative on Syria

Hubert Vedrine, a former French minister for foreign affairs, talks to Al-Monitor about the Syrian crisis.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (R) walks with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu (C) and French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius after a meeting regarding Syria, at the Quai d'Orsay in Paris September 16, 2013. The United States, Britain, France and Russia agree Syria must face consequences if it does not fully comply with a U.N. resolution to ensure a handover of its chemical weapons, Kerry said on Monday. REUTERS/Larry Downing (FRANCE - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX13N9S

Davutoglu: Shooting Down of Helicopter 'Punishment' for Syria

Turkey’s frustration with the Damascus regime going unpunished, even for using chemical weapons, played a major role in shooting down a Syrian helicopter.

A tank and helicopters that belonged to the Syrian Army are seen at the Minnig military airport after it was seized by rebels, August 11, 2013. Syrian rebels captured the main military airport near the border with Turkey on August 6, consolidating their hold on a key supply route north of the city of Aleppo, opposition activists said. REUTERS/Mahmoud Hassano (SYRIA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST MILITARY TRANSPORT CONFLICT) - RTX12HMK

Turkey Should Shut Down Jihadists on Border

Turkey's shooting down of a Syrian helicopter that violated its airspace on Sept. 16 should provoke a clampdown on all border activity.

Syria War Polarizes West Bank Palestinians

Increased international attention on Syria has reignited debate among West Bank Palestinians over whom to support.

Palestinian militants of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) stand with their weapons at a demonstration during a military graduation ceremony in front of the media in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip March 13, 2013. REUTERS/Suhaib Salem (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST MILITARY) - RTR3EX78

Iran Increases Aid to PFLP Thanks to Syria Stance

Iran has rewarded the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine's pro-Assad stance with an increase in financial and military assistance.

Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal attends the opening of an Arab foreign ministers emergency meeting to discuss the Syrian crisis and the potential military strike on President Bashar al-Assad's regime, at the Arab League headquarters in Cairo, September 1, 2013. Saudi Arabia told fellow Arab League states on Sunday that opposing international intervention against the Syrian government would only encourage Damascus to use weapons of mass destruction. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh (EGYPT -

Saudis Set Back by US-Russia Deal on Syrian Chemical Weapons

Saudi Arabia, like Iran, has pursued a sectarian interventionist strategy in Syria that furthers the war and undermines a democratic transition.

Lebanon's President Michel Suleiman (C) meets with members of "March 14" coalition at the presidential palace in Baabda, near Beirut, June 18, 2013. Lebanon's main Sunni Muslim political party pleaded with the presidency on Tuesday to prevent "state collapse", blaming the Shi'ite Hezbollah group for dragging the country into the war in neighbouring Syria. REUTERS/Dalati Nohra/Handout via Reuters (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS) ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY.

More Obstacles to Formation Of New Lebanon Government

As conflict continues to rage next door in Syria, Lebanon’s polarized political scene must face several challenges before it can build a government that satisfies past agreements.