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Syria

April 8, 2026

Damascus 1:55 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

LOUAI BESHARA/AFP via Getty Images

Islamic Jihad accuses Israel of assassinating leader in Syria

The Gaza-based group has accused Israel of killing one of its commanders in Syria after the man was shot dead in front of his home near the capital Damascus.

Assad Putin

Why has the Kremlin upped its protocol for Syria's Assad in Russia?

Public ceremonies for the Syrian leader, in contrast to his previous secret meetings, suggest that Assad is in a stronger position to negotiate with Moscow.

Russia fighter

Pentagon sees ‘spike’ in armed Russian flyovers of US troops in Syria

CENTCOM commander Michael “Erik” Kurilla told Congress about ongoing 'aggressive' behavior by Russian pilots, following the downing of a US MQ-9 drone over the Black Sea.

VLADIMIR GERDO/SPUTNIK/AFP via Getty Images

Turkey-Syria summit postponed at last minute as Russia nudges rivals to reconcile

The two countries' deputy foreign ministers plus those of Russia and Iran had been due to meet to discuss further rapprochement efforts.

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad at the Kremlin in Moscow on March 15, 2023.

Syria, Russia to sign 40 investment deals after Assad’s visit

Syrian President Assad also said in an interview with Sputnik that he would not meet with Turkish President Erdogan until Turkey removes its troops from Syria.

Amphetamine

Saudi Arabia seizes 4.6 million amphetamine pills in bathroom shipment

A Jordanian national was apprehended in Jeddah while receiving the amphetamine shipment hidden in ceramic toilets, sinks and washbasins.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad hold a meeting in Damascus on January 7, 2020. - Putin met his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad during an unprecedented visit to Damascus as the prospect of war between Iran and the United States loomed over the region. (Photo by Alexey DRUZHININ / SPUTNIK / AFP) (Photo by ALEXEY DRUZHININ/SPUTNIK/AFP via Getty Images)

Syria’s Assad arrives in Russia for talks with Putin

Assad’s visit comes ahead of a meeting between Syrian and Turkish diplomats in Russia.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (L) and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (R) speak after a news conference in Ankara, on June 8, 2022. -

Russia to host Turkey, Syria, Iran diplomats on Wednesday

Senior Turkish, Syrian, Iranian and Russian diplomats are set to meet to advance the stalled rapprochement between Ankara and Damascus.

Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images for Freedom House

MidEast freedom rankings: Syria worst, Tunisia in decline, says Freedom House

Syria remains to be the least and Israel the best performing country when it comes civil and political freedoms while the biggest one-year decline has been observed in Tunisia.

Syria sheep

Islamic State kills three, steals sheep in central Syria

IS continues to carry out attacks throughout Syria despite no longer holding territory.

Barbara Leaf (L), US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, and Dana Stroul (C), US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defence (DASD) for the Middle East, join a media roundtable in Kuwait City on October 19, 2022. (Photo by YASSER AL-ZAYYAT / AFP) (Photo by YASSER AL-ZAYYAT/AFP via Getty Images)

US will 'protect' its technology against China theft in Middle East: Leaf

Barbara Leaf, top Middle East official at the State Department told Al-Monitor that the Syrian government is participating in the drug trade, and blamed Iran for the failure of the nuclear deal.

A woman dressed in traditional clothing poses for a picture while standing on a rock in the Mazqaft water reservoir in the countryside of the town of Qahtaniyah in Syria's northeastern Hasakah province close to the border with Turkey, during Syrian Kurdish celebrations on the second day of Nowruz, the Persian New Year, on March 21, 2021. (Photo by DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Culture

A decade into Kurdish autonomous rule, what changed for northeast Syria's women?

Since 2013, the province of Hasakah in northeastern Syria has been ruled by an autonomous administration guided by overtly feminist principles. Ten years later, what has changed for rural women? What challenges remain?