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Syria

September 20, 2025

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Israeli troops patrol the border fence with Syria near the Druze village of Majdal Shams in the Israel-annexed Golan Heights, July 23, 2025.

Analysis

Seeking leeway on Gaza, Netanyahu backs Trump’s Syria pact push

The US is working intensively to arrange a historic meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and Syrian President Sharaa on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Analysis

From Palestine push to Sharaa’s UN debut: What to watch at UN summit

The annual international get-together will feature a wave of Palestinian statehood recognition, the Syrian president’s United Nations debut and possible 11th-hour diplomacy with Iran.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

UN Special Envoy for Syria, Geir Otto Pedersen addresses a press conference in Damascus on Jan. 22, 2025.

UN special envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen steps down after six years

Pedersen is leaving as Syria continues to grapple with political upheaval, humanitarian crises and ongoing conflict.

UMIT BEKTAS/AFP via Getty Images

In first visit in 25 years, Syrian FM pushes sanctions relief in Washington

Asaad al-Shibani’s visit to Washington comes as Syria seeks sanctions relief and engages in US-mediated talks with Israel on a security agreement.

Latest News

Turkey’s spy chief in Damascus as Israel, Syria weigh new security map

Turkish Presidential spokesperson Ibrahim Kalin gives a press conference following talks with Sweden and Finland over their bids to join NATO at the Presidential Complex in Ankara, on May 25, 2022.

Syria, Jordan, US unveil road map to stabilize Suwayda after clashes: What to know

Bedouin and tribal fighters deploy at the western entrance of Syria's Druze heartland of Suwayda on July 18, 2025.

Syria holds first post‑Assad parliamentary vote: What to know

Interim Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa appears in the Citadel of Aleppo in Syria, on May 27, 2025.

Top US general discusses SDF integration with Sharaa in Damascus

CENTCOM

Amberin Zaman

Chief Correspondent

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Jared Szuba

Pentagon 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

This aerial view shows residents helped by bulldozers, searching for victims and survivors in the rubble of collapsed buildings, following an earthquake in the town of Sarmada in the countryside of the northwestern Syrian Idlib province, early on February 6, 2023. Over 1,500 people have been killed in the earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria. (Photo by MUHAMMAD HAJ KADOUR/AFP via Getty Images)

Gulf countries rush earthquake aid to Turkey, Syria

Countries in the Gulf have announced aid for Turkey and Syria after Monday's devastating earthquakes.

Middle East corruption rankings: Syria most corrupt, UAE least, Turkey slipped

Corruption remains rampant across the Middle East and North Africa, Transparency International reports, with the region’s average score in combating corruption hitting a new low of 38.

OMAR HAJ KADOUR/AFP via Getty Images

Turkey faces tough options on Syrian rebel allies amid Damascus thaw

Ankara’s quest to restore ties with Damascus has left its Syrian rebel allies confused as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the jihadi group controlling Idlib, seeks to raise its profile and lure the disenchanted to its ranks.

Fighters affiliated with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham take part in a military excercise on attacking tactics with live ammunition, on the outskirts of Idlib, Syria, Nov. 8, 2022.

Increase in Jihadist attacks in Syria as Turkey courts Assad

Syrian jihadi groups are increasing their attacks on Syrian army outposts, as tripartite meetings between Russia, Turkey and Syria hint at a potential rapprochement deal to end the decade-long war.

A picture shows the Kurdish-run al-Hol camp, which holds relatives of suspected Islamic State (IS) group fighters in the northeastern Hasakeh governorate, during a security operation by the Kurdish Asayish security forces and the special forces of the Syrian Democratic Forces, on Aug. 26, 2022.

Iraq repatriates 580 citizens from Syria’s al-Hol camp

The Islamic State sees the tens of thousands of detainees at al-Hol and other prison facilities in Syria as key to rebuilding its army, US officials have said.

Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian speaks during a joint press conference with his Turkish counterpart in Ankara on Jan. 17, 2023.

Turkey, Iran to step up cooperation on Ankara-Damascus thaw

While the top Turkish and Iranian diplomats appear to be on the same page over the ongoing Damascus-Ankara rapprochement, both foreign ministers also raised contentious issues during the Iranian foreign minister’s visit to Turkey.

DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP via Getty Images

Interview

Syrian Kurdish commander wants peace with Turkey, but will 'fully' resist attack

In an interview with Al-Monitor, Syrian Democratic Forces head Mazlum Kobane said he expects a Turkish attack in February, and warned Ankara should not punish Syria’s Kurds over its own failure to resolve its own domestic issues.

Mazlum Kobane

Mazlum Kobane

SDF commander in chief

OMAR HAJ KADOUR/AFP via Getty Images

Syrian refugees in Turkey watch uneasily as Erdogan warms to Assad

Syrians in Turkey are wary of losing refuge as the Turkish President eyes dialogue with Assad

FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP via Getty Images

Fledgling Turkish-Syrian dialogue faces bumpy road ahead

Ankara and Damascus need to moderate their positions to avoid a collision in their quest for normalization.

A banner depicting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Russian President Vladimir Putin reading "Justice Prevails" is displayed along a highway, Damascus, Syria, March 8, 2022.

Syria's Assad hosts Russian envoy, discusses rapprochement with Turkey

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad met with Russian special envoy Alexander Lavrentiev to discuss ending the occupation of Syrian land, highlighting the potential rapprochement with Turkey.

OMAR HAJ KADOUR/AFP via Getty Images

Breaking | Last Updated: January 9, 2023, 1:41 pm

UN extends Syria cross-border aid by six months

By a vote of 15-0, the UN Security Council renewed the provision of aid from the Turkish-Syrian border through July.

Erdogan Putin

Analysis

Will Erdogan and Assad soon meet to bury the hatchet?

Erdogan’s opportunism, Putin’s weakness, Iran’s distraction, Israel’s vigilance all complicate Syrian endgame.

Week in Review

By Week in Review