This is Beirut - Damascus

Rubio Demands Syrian Government Forces Intervene To Prevent Jihadist Attacks

This is Beirut, 20/07 05:40 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Saturday called on the Syrian government's security forces to prevent jihadists from entering and "carrying out massacres" in the conflict-stricken south of the country. "If authorities in Damascus want to preserve any chance of achieving a unified, inclusive and peaceful Syria... they must ...

Crisis in Sweida: Syrian President Denounces Foreign Interference

This is Beirut, 19/07 12:10 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Damascus Druzes Syria

In a televised address this morning, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa described the recent clashes in the Sweida province as "a dangerous turning point in Syria’s security and political situation," while accusing foreign powers of fueling instability. The president stated that "the violent clashes between armed groups nearly spiraled out of ...

Erdogan Accuses Israel of Using Druze as Pretext to Expand Into Syria

This is Beirut, 17/07 20:55 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Damascus Israel Erdogan Druze Syria Sweida

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday accused Israel of using the Druze minority in Syria as a pretext for expanding into the war-torn country. "Israel, using the Druze as an excuse, has been expanding its banditry into neighboring Syria over the past two days," Erdogan said in a televised speech after the weekly cabinet meeting. "I ...

Syria Troops Quit Druze Heartland After Violence Leaves Over 500 Dead

This is Beirut, 17/07 19:35 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Benjamin Netanyahu Damascus Israel Sweida

Syrian troops pulled out of the Druze heartland province of Sweida on orders from the Islamist-led government, following days of deadly clashes that killed more than 500 people, according to a war monitor. The southern province has been gripped by deadly sectarian bloodshed since Sunday, with hundreds reportedly killed in clashes pitting Druze ...

Kurdish Official Urges Damascus to 'Review' Minorities Approach

This is Beirut, 17/07 17:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Damascus Syria Minorities

A Kurdish official on Thursday urged Syria's new authorities to rethink their approach to the country's minorities following deadly clashes with Druze fighters in the south. Syrian government forces withdrew from the Sweida province overnight on Wednesday following deadly clashes with Druze militants. Since the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad in ...

Syria says Local Factions to Secure Violence-Hit Sweida

This is Beirut, 17/07 09:25 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Damascus Israel Saudi Arabia Turkey

The Syrian government announced Thursday that local leaders would assume control over security in the city of Sweida in an attempt to end violence that has claimed hundreds of lives and prompted Israel's military intervention in support of the Druze minority. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and eyewitnesses told AFP on Thursday ...

Israel Strikes Near Syrian Army HQ: State TV

This is Beirut, 16/07 19:03 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Damascus Israel Benjamin Netanyahu Syria

An Israeli strike on Wednesday hit near the Syrian army and defense ministry headquarters in Damascus, the state-run Alekhbariya channel reported on Telegram, after Israel's military said it had struck there. AFP correspondents heard a loud explosion echoing throughout much of the capital shortly after a first air strike had targeted the same ...

Sweida Caught Between Damascus and Israel

Mario Chartouni, 16/07 19:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Damascus Israel Syria Sweida Druzes

The majority-Druze city of Sweida in southern Syria has been thrust into an unprecedented spiral of violence since Sunday, as fierce clashes between the Syrian army, backed by Bedouin militias, and local Druze armed groups have escalated dramatically. The fighting has been marked by intense combat, summary executions, a deepening humanitarian ...

Syrian Forces Accused of 'Executions' in Druze Area as Israel Launches Strikes

This is Beirut, 15/07 23:16 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Damascus Israel Syria Sweida

Syrian authorities were accused on Tuesday of carrying out summary executions of civilians in the predominantly Druze province of Sweida, where Israel said it had launched strikes against government forces in defense of the religious minority. Damascus deployed troops to the area after clashes between Druze fighters and Bedouin tribes killed ...

Syria Signs $800 mn Port Deal with UAE-Based Company: State Media

This is Beirut, 13/07 17:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Damascus Europe USA

Syria signed an $800 million deal with UAE-based company DP World on Sunday to develop the port of Tartus, state media reported, as the new authorities continue their efforts to support post-war reconstruction. Following the toppling of longtime Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad in December, the new Islamist authorities have worked to reconnect the ...

Syrian and Israeli Officials Hold Meeting in Baku

This is Beirut, 12/07 18:05 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Damascus Syria Baku Israel

A meeting between Syrian and Israeli officials took place on Saturday in Baku, on the sidelines of interim Syrian President Ahmad al-Shareh’s visit to Azerbaijan, a diplomatic source in Damascus familiar with the talks between the two neighboring countries said. In May, U.S. President Donald Trump stated that, following his meeting with the ...

The Dual Peril Facing Eastern Christians

Fady Noun, 12/07 09:00 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

Pope Francis Damascus Christians Lebanon Massabki brothers Syria

On June 22, a deadly bombing inside Damascus’s Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Elijah during Mass claimed 25 lives and left around 50 injured. In response, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch, Youhanna X, rightly declared that the victims deserve to be honored as martyrs of the faith, just as those who perished in past tragedies in Lebanon, ...

Damascus