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Syria

April 10, 2026

Damascus 1:05 am

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This handout photograph provided by the Turkish Foreign Ministry press service shows Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (L) meeting with Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani (R) in Damascus on Dec. 22, 2025.

Analysis

How the Iran war can help Syria manage Turkey and its regional rivals

Rising regional tensions and disrupted oil flows are giving Damascus leverage to balance Ankara and other neighbors while exploring alternative energy corridors.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

A member of the Popular Mobilization Forces patrols along a concrete wall at the Iraqi-Syrian border in Al-Qaim, west of Iraq, on Jan. 23, 2026.

Syria reopens key crossing after 11 years, aiding Iraq's oil exports amid war

Iraq and Syria have shown a desire to cooperate on oil exports, and the matter has become more urgent due to the disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.

Sharaa, King Charles

In UK visit, Syria’s Sharaa doubles down on Western ties amid Iran war, refugee pressures

After talks with UK leaders on Tuesday, Syria's president said the country would remain neutral in the Iran conflict unless it was targeted.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz (R) and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa depart after speaking to the media following talks at the Chancellery on March 30, 2026, in Berlin, Germany.

Analysis

Why Germany may struggle to meet Merz’s 80% Syria repatriation goal

Germany, which hosts the EU’s largest Syrian refugee population, is pushing to repatriate Syrians, but Syria’s domestic issues and legal protections for asylum seekers complicate those efforts.

By Rosaleen Carroll

In Washington, DC, US, reporting on the Middle East

Latest News

Syria sustains drone attack from Iraq, tackles smuggling tunnels on Lebanon border

Members of the Popular Mobilization Units stand guard along the Iraqi-Syrian border in Al-Qaim, west of Iraq, on Jan. 23, 2026.

Syrian authorities restrict alcohol sales in Damascus: What to know

People drink and chat in a bar in the old town in Damascus on June 19, 2025 in Damascus, Syria.

Top Kurdish critic of Damascus named Syria's deputy defense minister

Sipan Hemo

Syria’s Sharaa blasts Iran’s 'destabilizing' role, moves closer to US, Gulf

A boy walks past an unexploded missile that landed in an open field on the outskirts of Qamishli, eastern Syria, on March 5, 2026.

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

Abu Mohammed al-Golani (L) and the HTS-affiliated government's Prime Minister Ali Keda appear at an opening ceremony for the Aleppo-Bab al-Hawa road, Jan. 7.

Syrian jihadist leader in Western wear, opens road in Idlib

In a new attempt to improve the image of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the group’s leader appeared in public in modern clothing to inaugurate a new road linking Aleppo to Bab al-Hawa.

Syria church

Last Christian in Idlib recalls his community

The last Christian in Idlib is 90 years old. Despite the war and the challenges, he stayed in Idlib even as all Christians left as a result of the war and restrictions imposed by extremist Islamic factions.

A Syrian holds a caricature of Bashar al-Assad and Vladimir Putin in a demonstration against the continuing assault by the Syrian regime and Russian forces in Idlib on Feb. 21, 2020.

Caricatures challenge restrictions, depict suffering of Idlib citizens

Despite the risks of being a female caricaturist in Idlib, many young Syrian women have successfully entered the field to express the concerns and pain of Syrians and make their voices heard.

ABDULAZIZ KETAZ/AFP via Getty Images

Turkish-backed factions wary of jihadi group in north Syria

The opponents of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham are accusing it of trying to wrest control over the areas of the Turkish-backed factions in north Syria, in light of its recent rapprochement with some of these factions.

A picture shows the entrance to the Directorate of Health in the rebel-held northwestern Syrian city of Idlib on Sept. 13, 2021.

Northern Syria health care plagued by issues as UN extends cross-border aid

A US-based group of doctors conducted a detailed assessment of the region’s health sector in both Kurdish and rebel territory.

Anwar Aslan trial

German court convicts ex-Syrian officer of crimes against humanity

Anwar Raslan is the highest-ranking former Syrian government official to be tried for crimes committed in Syria's civil war.

A fighter with the Syrian Democratic Forces inspects a makeshift shelter dug in a trench at a makeshift camp for Islamic State members and their families in the town of Baghouz, Deir Ez-zor, Syria, March 9, 2019.

Syrians dig for Islamic State left-behinds in eastern desert

Many unemployed Syrians have embarked on dangerous search and excavation operations for money, gold and weapons left by the Islamic State in Deir ez-Zor governorate.

AAREF WATAD/AFP via Getty Images

Poverty forces Syrian children to skip school, collect ordnance

For several child workers in the Idlib countryside, the detritus of war has become their livelihood.

JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images

Intel: Biden faces bipartisan frustration over Syria policy

The top members on the House and Senate foreign affairs panels cautioned against giving “tacit approval of formal diplomatic engagement with the Syrian regime.”

Men standing in the back of a truck after fleeing battles between SDF and IS in the Syrian village of Baghuz arrive after crossing a desert to a region controlled by the SDF in Deir ez-Zor on Jan. 26, 2019.

Syrian Kurdish forces require displaced Arabs to obtain 'expat card' to remain in their areas

The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is requiring Arabs displaced from all Syrian regions who are living in the areas under their control to obtain an expatriate card to be allowed to enter or remain.

Chris McGrath/Getty Images

UN extends Syria cross-border aid without challenge from Russia

The Biden administration eased restrictions on aid groups working with the Syrian government in November.

Anas al-Kholi with his camera near Damascus.

Syrian activists tell stories of displacement over lost decade

Displacement and exile have become a common narrative for Syrians since 2011.