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May 14, 2026

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Mazloum Kobane, commander-in-chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), speaks during the pan-Kurdish "Unity and Consensus" conference in Qamishli in northeastern Syria on April 26, 2025.

Interview

Syrian Kurdish commander Kobane says Turkey visit ‘in the making,’ Ocalan meeting possible

The SDF commander-in-chief reflected on a fragile integration deal with Damascus, growing Kurdish backlash and ongoing talks with Turkey as questions mount over Rojava’s political future.

Mazloum Kobane

Mazloum Kobane

SDF commander in chief

Khaled Hablas

Lebanon authorities release Salafist cleric Khaled Hablas: What to know

Hablas was imprisoned for his role in the deadly 2014 clashes with the military and Hezbollah and his release follows Syria lobbying for the return of militants detained in Lebanon.

Pictured in this undated image is the Al-Thawra oil field in Raqqa governorate, as rehabilitation works continue to restore production capacity.

Syria restores Raqqa oil field in former ISIS stronghold: What to know

Before Syria's civil war erupted in 2011, national oil production stood at between 400,000 and 500,00 barrels per day before falling to under 100,000 bpd during the conflict.

Latest News

Turkey's border reopening unlocks new sphere of influence in Syria

Turkish Red Crescent's cars and trucks cross the Turkish border as they leave the Syrian city of Tel Abyad on Oct. 19, 2019, in Akcakale, Turkey.

EU restores economic pact to pursue fuller trade ties with Syria

Kaja Kallas

Analysis

MENA wheat importers face food security risks as Hormuz crisis festers

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

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

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

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)

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

Lebanon's President Michel Suleiman (R) meets with Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov at the presidential palace in Baabda, near Beirut, April 26, 2013. REUTERS/Dalati Nohra/Handout (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS) ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS PICTURE IS DISTRIBUTED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - RTXZ0WW

Russian Embassy in Beirut Becomes Hub for Syria Diplomacy

With Russia’s diplomatic base relocated from Damascus to Beirut, Moscow is refining its strategy on the Syrian crisis as the second Geneva conference nears.

Ralph Alswang Photographer
www.ralphphoto.com
202-487-5025

Van Hollen Discusses Middle East, 'Unintended Consequences' in Syria

Representative Christopher Van Hollen, ranking Democrat on the House Budget Committee, discusses the Middle East in an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor.

The owner of a shop and his family members wait in his damaged shop at the site of a twin bomb blast in the town of Reyhanli in Hatay province, near the Turkish-Syrian border May 14, 2013. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTXZLWK

Bombings Lead to Anger, Questions Over Turkey’s Syria Policy

Many Turks are wondering how their nation's Syrian policy can be a success when it has started costing innocent Turkish lives.

Turkey's Alevis attend a rally in Ankara November 9, 2008. Thousands of Turkish Alevis marched in Ankara on Sunday in their first massive demonstration to call for an end to discrimination by the government and compulsory religious classes. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY) - RTXAF37

Bombing Exposes Divide In Turkish Politics

Tensions in Reyhanli mirror Turkish Alevis' frustrations over their unmet demands for recognition.

U.S. President Barack Obama (7th R) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (6th R) pose with members of Israel's defense force as he views an Iron Dome Battery at Ben Gurion International Airport Airport in Tel Aviv March 20, 2013. Obama said at the start of his first official visit to Israel on Wednesday that the U.S. commitment to the security of the Jewish state was rock solid and that peace must come to the Holy Land. REUTERS/Jason Reed (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR3F84T

Can the Israeli Defense Budget Be Cut In Half?

A veteran Israeli Defense Forces general claims the threats to Israel today do not require a massive military or huge air force.

Moaz Alkhatib, head of the Syrian National Coalition, attends the Arab League summit in Doha in this March 26, 2013 handout. A summit of Arab heads of state opened in the Qatari capital Doha on Tuesday expected to focus on the war in Syria as well as on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. REUTERS/Handout (QATAR - Tags: POLITICS) ATTENTION EDITORS - FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED

Syrian Parties Respond to US-Russia Conference Proposal

Syrian parties consider their participation in the conference proposed by the United States and Russia.

A Kurdish fighter from the "Popular Protection Units" (YPG) gestures after firing towards Syrian government forces inside a building in the majority-Kurdish Sheikh Maqsud district of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, on April 21, 2013. Syria's National Coalition head Ahmad Moaz al-Khatib has refiled his resignation and an interim leader is being sought, a fellow member and a source close to the main opposition group said. AFP PHOTO/MIGUEL MEDINA (Photo credit should read MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP/Getty Ima

Iraqi Kurds Reportedly Among Jihadists in Syria

Iraqi Kurdish youth have reportedly been fighting alongside jihadists in Syria.

Syrians wait to cross back into Syria at the Turkish Cilvegozu border, opposite the Syrian commercial crossing point Bab al-Hawa, in Reyhanli, Hatay province, May 14, 2013. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTXZLW2

No 'Good Guys' Or 'Bad Guys' in Syria

Saudi Arabia and Qatar need to support a diplomatic outcome in Syria.

A man checks an apartment in a damaged building at the site of a blast in the town of Reyhanli in Hatay province, near the Turkish-Syrian border, May 13, 2013. Syria's information minister has blamed Turkey's government for deadly car bombings near the Syrian border and branded Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan a "murderer", state-run Russian TV company RT reported on Monday. It said he repeated a denial of Syrian involvement in car bombings that killed 46 people on Saturday in the Turkish border town of Reyhan

Turkish Court Imposes Media Clampdown on Reyhanli Bombing

The Turkish government upped its efforts to control the debate on the Syrian crisis by imposing overt censorship with a court decision on reporting about the Reyhanli bombings.

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (R) and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry react during a joint news conference after their meeting in Moscow, May 7, 2013. The U.S. secretary of state sought Russian help in ending Syria's civil war on Tuesday, telling President Vladimir Putin in Moscow that common interest in a stable Middle East could bridge divisions among the big powers. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin (RUSSIA - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTXZE2F

Iran Fears Partnership on Syria Between US, Russia

If Russia and the United States start cooperating to resolve the Syrian crisis, Assad may forced to jump into Iran’s lap.

Smoke rises after shells exploded in the Syrian village of Al Rafeed, close to the ceasefire line between Israel and Syria, as seen from the Israeli occupied Golan Heights May 7, 2013. Israel played down weekend air strikes close to Damascus reported to have killed dozens of Syrian soldiers, saying they were not aimed at influencing its neighbour's civil war but only at stopping Iranian missiles reaching Lebanese Hezbollah militants. REUTERS/Baz Ratner (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY) - RTXZDAV

Game-Changers in Syria Will Lead To Israel-Iran Confrontation

The confrontation between Israel and Iran is escalating over Syria and expanding in Lebanon.

A policeman inspects damaged cars after two rockets hit houses and a car sales yard in Beirut suburbs May 26, 2013. Two rockets hit a Shi'ite Muslim district of southern Beirut on Sunday, residents said, wounding several people, a day after the leader of Lebanese Shi'ite militant movement Hezbollah said his group would continue fighting in Syria until victory. REUTERS/Mohammed Azakir (LEBANON - Tags: CIVIL UNREST) - RTX1015N

Reyhanli Worst Terror Attack Turkey Has Witnessed

Despite such devastating tragedy, the Erdogan government is still trying to defend its Syria policy, writes Tulin Daloglu.