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Syria

August 30, 2026

Damascus 7:49 pm

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Analysis

UAE gauges new Lebanon deals amid Levant economic stabilization push

Beirut welcomed a high-level business delegation from the UAE in late August as Abu Dhabi pursues new regional economic engagement amid Iran's waning influence.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa arrive for a joint press conference following their meeting at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, Feb. 4, 2025.

Analysis

Why Turkey welcomes Israel-Syria talks despite mounting red lines

Turkey supports US-backed Israel-Syria talks but sees little prospect of a lasting accommodation until the Israeli elections.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

cards

Sharaa taps Visa as Syria reconnects to global finance: What to know

Visa and Mastercard announced Wednesday that their networks can now be used to make international card payments in Syria.

Latest News

Analysis

Capitulation or compromise? What SDF's dissolution means for Sharaa, Turkey and Syria's Kurds

Mazloum Kobane, leader of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), speaks during a televised speech at the People's Palace in Damascus on Aug. 25, 2026.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

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

The silhouette of an Israeli soldier is outlined in the sky by a flare fired to search for a rocket that landed near Kibbutz Meitsar in the Israeli annexed Golan Heights, April 9, 2023. - Israel launched artillery strikes on Syria early morning on April 8 after several rockets were fired from there and landed in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Israel's retaliatory strike to rocket attacks from Syria -- which no one has claimed -- is the latest episode in escalating violence in the region. (Photo by JALA

Israel carries out airstrikes in Aleppo, Syria: local media

The incident near Aleppo followed suspected Israeli strikes on a Hezbollah center in central Syria over the weekend, and as Arab foreign ministers meet in Jordan to normalize relations with Assad.

BAKR ALKASEM/AFP via Getty Images

US does not confirm Turkey’s claim of killing Islamic State leader in Syria

The US administration said it had no information to support Ankara’s claim to have killed the Islamic State leader.

Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan (L), Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad (R) arrive for a regional meeting on Syria, in Amman on May 1, 2023. - Arab foreign ministers will gather in Jordan on May 1, to discuss Syria's long-running conflict and ending Damascus's diplomatic isolation in the region, the foreign ministry in Amman said. (Photo by Khalil MAZRAAWI / AFP) (Photo by KHALIL MAZRAAWI/afp/AFP v

Jordan hosts meeting to facilitate Syria’s return to Arab League

Diplomats from Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Iraq are meeting in Jordan as Syria’s political reintegration into the Arab world accelerates.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan meets Syrian President Bashar Al Assad in Damascus on April 18, 2023.

Syria's Arab League return still uncertain, even as Assad normalization continues

The Saudi-led tide of normalization with Syrian President Assad may end his regional isolation, but just on a diplomatic level for now.

A soldier mans a machine gun mounted on an army vehicle during a Turkish and Russian military patrol in the countryside of Rumaylan (Rmeilan), in Syria's northeastern Hasakeh province bordering Turkey, on April 27, 2023. (Photo by Delil souleiman / AFP) (Photo by DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Syrian refugees abused, shot at by Turkey's border guards: HRW report

Syrian refugees are under mounting pressure in Turkey as the president seeks to mend ties with the Syrian government.

Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar is seen standing at the start of the North Atlantic Council meeting of defence ministers during the second and final day of the NATO defence ministers' meeting at the NATO headquarters on October 13, 2022 in Brussels, Belgium. The North Atlantic Council (NAC) Defence Ministers are convening at the NATO headquarters in Brussels for a two-day summit as the war in Ukraine continues into its seventh month. (Photo by Omar Havana - Pool / Getty Images)

Turkey, Syria defense chiefs meet in Russia, discuss ‘normalization'

The Moscow meeting was described as “positive” by both sides since Syrian-Turkish rapprochement took off last year.

SANA/AFP via Getty Images

EU slaps Captagon sanctions on relatives of Syria's Assad

The European Union adopted new restrictive measures today against Syrian individuals and entities accused of trafficking narcotics and supporting the oppressive Syrian government.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) arrive for a joint press conference with their Iranian counterpart following their summit in Tehran on July 19, 2022. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo by ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey, Syria send defense, intel chiefs to meet in Russia

The meeting will mark the second round of talks that began late last year.

Israeli fighters Lebanon

Israel shells Hezbollah targets in Syria in latest escalation

The shelling targeted Hezbollah positions in southern Syria, local outlets reported, but the Syrian government notably has not commented.

Kurdish Syrians protest the death of victims reportedly killed in a Turkish drone bombing the previous day, on Nov. 10, 2021 in the Syrian Kurdish-majority city of Qamishli.

Syria’s Kurds make their own pitch as Arab states court Assad

Syrian Kurds, whom Bashar al-Assad once labeled “traitors” and “collaborators,” now seek a new peace with the Syrian government.

Syria Saudi

Analysis

The tipping point of Arab normalization with Syria

If the once-pariah state is welcomed back into the Arab League, the repercussions will stretch across Russia, Turkey, Iran and beyond.

Gilles Kepel

By Gilles Kepel

Tunisian Foreign Minister Nabil Ammar (R) meets Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad (L) during an official visit in Tunis, Tunisia on April 17, 2023 (Tunisian Foreign Ministry)

Syria FM visits Tunisia in latest Arab embrace of Assad

Mekdad's three-day visit to Tunis marks the first by a Syrian official since the North African country cut ties with the Syrian regime in February 2012 over its brutal crackdown against peaceful protests.