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May 10, 2026

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Crops of wheat and barley in Terbol village on May 10, 2022, in Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.

Analysis

MENA wheat importers face food security risks as Hormuz crisis festers

Home to many of the world's largest wheat importers, the Middle East and North Africa face acute food security risks as the US-Israel-Iran war disrupts global fertilizer flows and pushes up prices.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

A young man stands in the entrance of tunnels that were used by the ISIS and the Assad's regime for fighting. Tadamon, Syria, February 7, 2025. (Photo by Raghed Waked / Middle East Images / Middle East Images via AFP) (Photo by RAGHED WAKED/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

Syria arrests Amjad Youssef, Tadamoun massacre perpetrator: What to know

Amjad Youssef appeared on video, allegedly killing dozens of civilians in 2013; he is the latest member of the Assad regime to be captured by the new Syrian government.

President of Syria Ahmed al-Shara arrives for the 80th session of the UN’s General Assembly (UNGA) at UN Headquarters on Sept. 23, 2025 in New York City.

Analysis

'Is it worth it?' Syria's Sharaa faces backlash over Missy Elliott performance

Backlash erupts after dancers perform to Missy Elliott’s “Work It,” exposing the tightrope between Sharaa’s outreach to the West and pressure from his Islamist base.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Syria's President Ahmed al-Sharaa arrives ahead of a meeting with Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer at 10 Downing Street in central London on March 31, 2026.

Syria’s Sharaa makes fourth visit to Saudi Arabia, first since Iran war: What to know

The visit comes in light of the deepening economic relations between Syria and Saudi Arabia post-Assad.

Latest News

How Syria's border opening with Iraq redefines Turkey-Kurd balance

Members of Iraq's security forces stand guard on the the al-Rabia border crossing with Syria on April 20, 2026.

EU to restore Syria cooperation pact ahead of May talks: What to know

Tobias SCHWARZ / AFP via Getty Images

Sharaa distances Syria from Iran war, says Israel talks ongoing: What to know

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Turkish Presient Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the Antalya Diplomatic Forum in Turkey April 17, 2026.

Analysis

Is Syria’s Sharaa poised to outdo Turkey in formalizing gains for Kurds?

Kurdish people waving Kurdistan flags gather to celebrate Nowruz on the hill of Urkesh in the countryside of Amuda in northeastern Syria on March 18, 2026. Nowruz, meaning "new day," is an ancient festival that marks the start of spring and the new year on the vernal equinox, which usually falls on March 20 or 21. It is celebrated by more than 300 million people worldwide and has been observed for over 3,000 years across regions including the Middle East, Central Asia, the Caucasus and parts of Eastern Euro

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

Soldiers loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad gesture from their tank, as they pass Mar Bacchus Sarkis monastery, in Maloula village, northeast of Damascus, after taking control of the village from rebel fighters April 14, 2014. REUTERS/Khaled al-Hariri (SYRIA - Tags: MILITARY POLITICS CONFLICT CIVIL UNREST TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR3L92W

Syria confident of Russian military support

In an interview with Al-Monitor in Damascus, a senior Syrian official said the Syrian war would end like the Algerian one, with the state defeating the terrorists and staying in power.

A fishmonger cleans fish at a wet market in Latakia city May 25, 2014. REUTERS/Khaled al-Hariri (SYRIA - Tags: FOOD BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT) - RTR3QRGH

Syrian coast attracts Aleppans displaced by war

Thousands of mostly Sunnis from Aleppo fleeing the violence in their city have found work, and little discrimination, on the Alawite-dominated Syrian coast.

Displaced young Syrians find home in Gaziantep cafe

A hip cafe in Gaziantep, near the Syrian border, has become a refuge for young, educated Syrian refugees.

Israel's Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman attends a meeting with the business community in Uganda's capital Kampala, September 10, 2009. Lieberman, accompanied by business and military delegation, is on an official African visit to Ethiopia, Kenya, Ghana, Uganda, and Nigeria. REUTERS/James Akena (UGANDA POLITICS BUSINESS) - RTR27O1U

Liberman outlines vision for 'regional arrangement' with Arab states

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman offers a plan for open contacts with "moderate" Arab states to deal with the threat from Iran and in pursuit of an agreement with the Palestinians.

A woman walks past election posters of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad along a street in Damascus June 2, 2014. Buoyed by a sequence of victories over the past year, won in large part through Iran and Hezbollah, its Lebanese paramilitary proxy, Assad will be elected president this week for a third seven-year term, symbolically contested by selected opponents playing walk-on roles to pad out the main drama. To match Insight SYRIA-ELECTION/ASSAD REUTERS/Khaled al-Hariri (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS

Syrian official: 'West will deal with us as a fait accompli'

With presidential elections in Syria scheduled for June 3, a Syrian official says, "Turkey will suffer greatly from its involvement against us."

Film tracks Syrian refugees' creative journey to asylum

A group of Palestinian Syrian refugees performed a mock wedding ceremony to bypass security checks as they crossed Europe from the Mediterranean to reach asylum in Sweden.

U.S. President Barack Obama speaks to U.S. troops deployed in Afghanistan during an unannounced visit to Bagram Air Base in Kabul, May 25, 2014. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (AFGHANISTAN - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR3QSY3o

Obama ramps up on Syria

The US president is giving new priority to the threat from terrorists in Syria, while calling for increased military support for opposition forces.

A Syrian national living in Beirut holds a picture of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad and his father, late President Hafez al-Assad, as Syrians gather to make their way to the Syrian Embassy in Beirut to cast their votes ahead of the June 3 presidential election, in Yarze, east of Beirut May 28, 2014. Expatriates and those who have fled the war were casting their ballots at dozens of Syrian embassies abroad ahead of next week's vote inside the country that opponents have dismissed as a farce as the fighti

Syrian voters shake up Lebanese politics

The throngs of Syrian voters in Beirut shocked the Lebanese political establishment.

A man takes a photo of his friend in front of a poster of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad at Umayyad Square in Damascus May 16, 2014. Syria is holding a presidential election for June 3, preparing the ground for Assad to defy widespread opposition and extend his grip on power, days after he said the civil war was turning in his favour. Opponents have dismissed the vote as a farce. REUTERS/Khaled al-Hariri (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT) - RTR3PGCV

Syrian government focuses on high election turnout

As the presidential elections approach, the Syrian regime is seeking validation in a high voter turnout.

A member of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant carries his weapon as he looks through a hole in a wall in Sheikh Saeed neighbourhood December 4, 2013. REUTERS/Molhem Barakat (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT MILITARY) - RTX163J6

Hamas denies ISIS presence after Gaza jihadist killed in Syria

A Palestinian jihadist militant fighting for the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) was killed last week in Syria, reflecting the rise of Salafist militants in Gaza, but Hamas remains adamant that the radical group does not exist in the Gaza Strip.

Iraqi Kurdish supporters of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) hold flags bearing portraits of jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan during a demonstration in Arbil on April 12, 2014 against the decision by Kurdish authorities to dig a trench along the border with neighboring Syria. The Kurdish autonomous region has backed Kurds in Syria against the extremists and has taken in some 200,000 refugees from the bloody conflict. AFP PHOTO / SAFIN HAMED (Photo credit should read SAFIN HAMED/AFP/Getty Images)

Rival Kurdish parties battle for power in Syria

A series of tit-for-tat incidents has worsened relations between the Kurdistan Workers Party of Abdullah Ocalan and the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Massoud Barzani.

Damage and debris is seen in the souks of Old Aleppo, November 23, 2013. The Syrian army loyal to President Bashar al-Assad took control of the souk surrounding the Umayyad Mosque that was previously dominated by Free Syrian Army fighters, they said. Some of the areas recaptured are the gold market, Souk Khairat Beck, Alzerb market and the Wali bil Maarouf shrine. REUTERS/George Ourfalian (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT) - RTX15Q1O

War profiteers plunder Syria

Both Syrian government forces and rebels are accused of rampant, systematic looting and robbery of civilian homes.